Shane Cassells (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The Minister of State said "regarding the HSE's proposal for the transition of the emergency department at Navan has been agreed." Yesterday, the HSE issued a letter saying it has this done. I have it here. It is being shared by the HSE itself. I do not trust it when it is issuing statements counter to what Ministers and Departments are saying. There is no trust between elected Members and the HSE, and more important, between it and the people, because of the manner in which is does its business. The Minister of State said the change is expected to affect only a small number of patients. Some 2,000 people a year go through those doors. As a result of these bypass protocols, 90% of them will not be going to Navan. How can the HSE send 2,000 people to an emergency department that is already at capacity? Where will they go? The HSE does not have the answer. They will be in tents out in the carpark. The Minister of State says this is an enhancement. How is it an enhancement if an elderly relative of mine is on a trolley in a carpark in Drogheda? It is a disgrace and a stain on this State and its health service to hold up this and say it is an adequate health service for the people of Meath and Navan. If the HSE thinks it can carry this off, it has another think coming.