Paul Gavan (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I must again mention the crisis in University Hospital Limerick, UHL. The figure yesterday, when there were 124 patients on trolleys, set a new record. It is shocking to think that here we are in summer and the hospital is still hitting a new record of shame with regard to patients on trolleys. As the Leader will be aware, this is an issue that a number of people, not only I, have been raising for years now. The issue continues to get worse. The figures, just in the first four months of this year, show that more than 6,000 people have spent time on a trolley in UHL. We are on target, as things stand, to exceed the dreadful total of more than 18,000 patients on trolleys last year.

A couple of things need to be said about the crisis. First, the 96-bed unit, which has long been promised and has been built, will only deliver 48 beds and will still leave us with a deficit of 200 beds. After 12 years in government, Fine Gael really needs to come up with more answers than that. The fact is there has not been sufficient planning and resources with regard to our hospital for many years. Second, the crisis is being compounded by staff who, through no fault of their own, are choosing to leave. I am getting calls from nurses and healthcare assistants, one of whom left to become a bus driver. He just could not cope with the crisis and struggle going on in the hospital. The crisis is being compounded and the Government is not listening to the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation, INMO, with regard to actions it could take to try to retain nurses and assist with the issue of housing for nurses. These issues have to be tackled.

For some time now, Deputy Quinlivan and I have been calling for change at the top of the hospital management structure. I do not understand why Government representatives are not recognising there is a fundamental problem. This is not all about money. UHL consistently has a far worse record than any other hospital in the country. Responsibility for that has to rest in the hands of management. It is also not helpful when we have a Minister who is in denial. If he is told about the 124 patients on trolleys, he will cite the TrolleyGAR figure of 41. He has done so twice in this Chamber. TrolleyGAR figures are calculated differently but the calculation does not explain how, at 8 a.m., there were apparently 41 patients on trolleys and an hour and a half later, we were up to 124. The Minister is in denial and that does not help in any way. I call for an urgent debate. I want to see the Minister in here. He is ultimately responsible for this crisis, which is getting worse rather than better. We need accountability and action.