Lynn Boylan (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I want to add my support for Senator Hoey's comments on blood donation. I agree that we must have a science-based policy approach. Last week I asked the Minister for Health to give confirmation of when we will move to the individual assessment approach but was just told that it would be by the end of this year. The Minister also needs to justify the use of a four-month rather than a three-month delay period and to explain the basis for same.

I also want to raise another issue related to the health service, that is, the excessive waiting times in accident and emergency departments and the number of people on trolleys. Yesterday there were 583 people on trolleys across the country. We are heading back to the pre-pandemic days of overcrowded emergency departments due to the failure of the Government to properly resource hospital capacity expansion. We can only increase capacity if we properly resource enough beds and the staff to safely manage them.

Earlier this month a full-time carer spoke of his ordeal in Tallaght Hospital where he waited for 24 hours to be seen with his son who had suspected appendicitis. While he waited in the accident and emergency department with is sick son, he had no choice but to leave his disabled wife and their daughter with autism home alone. As he said himself, every nurse and doctor he met was fantastic. They were caring, deeply apologetic and fed up to their back teeth with the systemic issues and working conditions. He spoke of how there were not enough seats for people to sit on. Even well people accompanying others cannot be expected to stand for 24 hours. With another Covid surge upon us which will inevitably increase pressure on the already exhausted healthcare workforce, the Minister for Health needs to outline how he intends to increase capacity in our emergency departments. I would also like the Minister to explain the four-month delay and to confirm the date for moving to the individual assessment process for blood donations.