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HSE to appear before the Oireachtas Health Committee today

HSE to appear before the Oireachtas Health Committee today

The HSE is due to appear before the Oireachtas Health Committee today.

A number of issues are expected to be raised by TDs and Senators, including the current overcrowding crisis.

The country's health system has been under severe pressure in recent weeks.

There has been record numbers of people on trolleys, a hat-trick of viruses circulating and staff have been asked to work extra hours.

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On the 3rd of January, the State recorded the highest ever number of patients waiting for a hospital bed on a single day at 931.

That number has since decreased, with 506 people without a bed yesterday.

Sinn Féin Health Spokesperson David Cullinane says the reduction to record numbers seen on trolleys this month is positive.

However, Waterford Deputy Cullinane says the cancellation of elective procedures will create more problems in the months ahead.

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"We have to bear in mind that the numbers of people of over 500 a day on hospital trolleys is still far too high and is way in excess of anything that we saw last year.

"But it's only masked by the fact because hospitals are cancelling elective procedures left, right and centre.

"All of the creates it's own problems because it creates a lot is miscare which has to be caught up on and that in itself would create challenges for hospitals over the next number of months."

There have also been reports of bullying within the health service from nurses and healthcare workers.

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While a TD yesterday suggested that it's time to consider requiring nursing and medical graduates to stay in the country for a number of years after they graduate to improve staffing levels.

Many of these issues will be discussed by the Oireachtas Health Committee today.

Representatives from the HSE will address the current challenges facing public hospitals, as GPs say they remain "under serious strain."

Hospital Overcrowding

There is a very real likelihood that some patients will have died as a result of avoidable delays in the health system in recent weeks, according to the Irish Medical Organisation.

While they say there is an even stronger likelihood that Ireland will see further increased deaths and delayed diagnosis.

Meanwhile, they say people who should go to Emergency Departments in the coming weeks will not now do so because of fears of what they have recently seen.

Dr Matthew Sadlier is the Chairman of the Consultant Committee of the IMO says; "There is very good, validated research that shows if patients that are delayed, who are admitted to hospital who are delayed in transferring from the emergency department to the ward, that this brings an increased mortality among that p[patient group.

"Given the fact that we have patients waiting for a long period, based on a 6 hour wait time and based that we have patients waiting longer than that, it is likely that negative outcomes have happened to our service aswell."

Speaking to Beat News about the hospital overcrowding, Tipperary TD Mattie McGrath  said management in the HSE and Department of Health should be charged with 'crimes against humanity'.

"The public are suffering and they are suffering for far too long, people are dying getting very, very poor outcomes as a result of the mismanagement.

"It's disgraceful, people should be charged with crimes against humanity in whats happening to people."

He continued to say it's time for the Health Minister Stephen Donnelly to step down.

"What I'm questioning is recruitment.

"It is all officials and clericals and management, and not frontline staff to what we need.

"It's time that Minister Donnelly packed his bags and left.

"He has offered nothing as a solution, only all problems, blames everybody else and is an utter failure."

Beat News asked Mattie McGrath what is the cause of the recruitment problem within the HSE:

 

Maximising capacity for public patients

Last month, Sinn Féin Health Spokesperson David Cullinane said: "The Minister needs to do everything possible to maximise capacity for public patients, and if that means utilising the private healthcare sector over the next number of months, that should be done.

"But I warned against this last year when the Minister presented his budget for 2022, and I said at the time that the plan for this winter was last year's budget, and in last year's budget there wasn't one single additional bed funded beyond previous commitments."

Mr Cullinane added: "We don't have enough emergency department consultants, we don't have the specialist staff that is needed to treat people as quickly as possible.

"Outside of hospitals, what's also driving people into emergency departments is a lack of community care, the fact people are waiting longer to see GPs. Out-of-hours GP care isn't what it should be in most areas, in fact in some areas it's non-existent."

 

 

 

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