Maurice Quinlivan (Limerick City, Sinn Fein)
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382. To ask the Minister for Health the number of times the full capacity protocol has been used in University Hospital Limerick in each of the years 2011 to 2017 and to date in 2018; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52926/18]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The HSE National Escalation Framework, issued to the system in late 2015, consists of a tiered and incremental suite of actions to be adapted and implemented in hospitals with an ED during times when such hospitals are challenged in matching capacity and demand for acute inpatient care.

The full capacity protocol is the last escalation step in the HSE National Escalation Framework.

In relation to the particular query raised, as this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to the Deputy directly.

Maurice Quinlivan (Limerick City, Sinn Fein)
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383. To ask the Minister for Health the number of emergency department attendances at University Hospital Limerick by month to date in 2018, in tabular form. [52927/18]

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. The Winter 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. These sites have been identified on the basis of pressures experienced in previous winters and include University Hospital Limerick.

In relation to the particular query raised, as this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to the Deputy directly.