Seán Fleming
Question:41. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Health the reason overcrowding in the emergency department in the Midland Regional Hospital, Portlaoise had doubled in March 2017 relative to March 2014. [20788/17]
View answerWednesday, 3 May 2017
Questions (41)
Written answers
Emergency Department (ED) attendances at the Midland Regional Hospital, Portlaoise to end March this year are down approximately 7.8% with admittances down approximately 12%. However, trolley numbers have increased approximately 25% year to date as compared to last year.
The HSE's Special Delivery Unit (SDU) undertook a site visit to the Midland Regional Hospital, Portlaoise in February 2017. A number of areas for efficiency improvement were identified in managing patient flow. The Dublin Midlands Hospital Group is working closely with the SDU and staff at the hospital to address areas for improvement identified in the ED and inpatient medical services.
As the Deputy will be aware, in September the HSE launched its ‘Winter Initiative Plan 2016-2017’ which provided €40 million of additional funding for winter preparedness.
My Department and the HSE are committed to utilising the key learning from the Winter Initiative to develop a plan focused on working with hospitals including the Midland Regional Hospital, Portlaoise, to improve performance in relation to reducing the number of patients that have to wait on trolleys and the overall patient ED experience. This important work will provide a framework around the preparation of the 2017/2018 plans for Winter preparedness.