Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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246. To ask the Minister for Health the extent to which the public health sector has prepared for all eventualities over the winter months with particular reference to the need for a reduction in waiting times and overcrowding at accident and emergency departments; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51213/18]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I acknowledge the distress overcrowded EDs cause to patients, their families, and frontline staff working in very challenging working conditions in hospitals throughout the country. This year has been characterised by high demand for unscheduled care, particularly among the over-75 age group, which was further exacerbated by Storm Emma and the extended influenza season earlier this year.

My Department has been working with the HSE throughout the year to ensure the most effective response to the pressures on our hospital system associated with the winter period. As part of this process, integrated Winter Preparedness Plans have been developed by Hospital Groups and Community Healthcare Organisations to meet the anticipated surge in demand for healthcare services during the winter months. The Plans are designed to optimise existing resources and encompass:

- planning and escalation;

- operational management of patient flow; and

- maintaining public health.

The Winter Plan, which was endorsed by the Emergency Department Task Force at its meeting on 26 November, is now in place and is due to be launched on the 6th of December. The Plan runs from 1 December 2018 until 31 March 2019 and includes a period of focused action from 17 December to 13 January targeting 9 sites of concern, identified on the basis of pressures experienced in previous winters.

A key component of the Plan, which is already underway, is the provision of an additional 550 home care packages over the winter period to help patients return home from hospital with the supports they need.

The Winter Plan will also seek to increase capacity and the Department of Health is currently in discussions with the HSE, in the context of the National Service Plan 2019, to identify the sites for investment and the associated number of beds, as part of an agreed capacity programme for 2019.

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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247. To ask the Minister for Health the extent to which he has monitored overcrowding at accident and emergency departments in various public hospitals throughout the country over the course of the past 12 months; his plans to address this issue and avoid a repeat in the winter of 2018-19; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51214/18]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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My Department has engaged extensively with the HSE throughout the year to ensure the most effective response to the challenges faced by our hospital system in the provision of unscheduled care this winter.

Along with officials in my Department, I participated in meetings of the Emergency Department Task Force (EDTF) during the year, which had an ongoing focus on winter planning. I also attended the EDTF Unscheduled Care Forum on 4 September, which gathered a wide range of stakeholders from the Irish health system to provide perspectives from the frontline on initiatives to improve patient experience and overall system performance. These initiatives informed the winter planning process.

I met with Hospital Groups and Community Health Care Organisations to discuss their plans for winter preparedness during September and October. These meetings were attended by officials in my Department and senior management in the HSE.

The Winter Preparedness Plans, developed by Hospital Groups and Community Healthcare Organisations, are designed to optimise existing resources and encompass:

- planning and escalation;

- operational management of patient flow; and

- maintaining public health.

The Winter Plan, which was endorsed by the Emergency Department Task Force at its meeting on 26 November, is now in place and is due to be launched on the 6th of December. The Plan runs from 1 December 2018 until 31 March 2019 and includes a period of focused action from 17 December to 13 January targeting 9 sites of concern, identified on the basis of pressures experienced in previous winters.

A key component of the Plan, which is already underway, is the provision of an additional 550 home care packages over the winter period to help patients return home from hospital with the supports they need.

The Winter Plan will also seek to increase capacity and the Department of Health is currently in discussions with the HSE, in the context of the National Service Plan 2019, to identify the sites for investment and the associated number of beds, as part of an agreed capacity programme for 2019.