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Emergency Departments

Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 17 April 2019

Wednesday, 17 April 2019

Ceisteanna (173, 174)

Niamh Smyth

Ceist:

173. Deputy Niamh Smyth asked the Minister for Health the status of work planned for a location (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17938/19]

Amharc ar fhreagra

Niamh Smyth

Ceist:

174. Deputy Niamh Smyth asked the Minister for Health if his attention has been drawn to the need for investment in regional hospitals and in particular a unit (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17939/19]

Amharc ar fhreagra

Freagraí scríofa

I propose to take Questions Nos. 173 and 174 together.

I acknowledge the distress overcrowded Emergency Departments cause to patients, their families, and frontline staff working in very challenging working conditions in hospitals throughout the country. The number of patients attending Emergency Departments continues to increase year on year, with approximately 1.3 million attendances in 2018, up 3.5% on 2017, hospitals are increasingly operating at or above capacity.

This is a very busy period for our health services, with many sites reporting significant numbers of patient attendances. In the first 2 months of 2019, the number of patients attending our hospital Emergency Departments increased by 7% and the number of Emergency Department admissions increased by 5% compared to the same period last year.

Despite this significant increase in demand, our health services have managed better than in previous years and based on provisional data, the numbers of patients on trolleys were 15% lower between December and February this winter than the previous winter.

The establishment of Hospital Groups has enabled a better configuration of hospital services with benefits relating to safety, quality, access, cost and sustainable medical staffing. The structure ensures that Hospitals working together in a Group will be able to support each other, providing a stronger role for smaller hospitals in delivering less complex care, and ensuring that those who require emergency or complex planned care are managed safely in larger hospitals.

The Smaller Hospitals Framework focuses in particular on the future role of smaller hospitals and outlines the wide range of services that can be provided within these smaller hospitals. The Department of Health is committed to securing and further developing the role of our smaller hospitals, including Model 3 hospitals such as Cavan Hospital, with the expansion of services delivered in these hospitals, especially in services such as day surgery; ambulatory care; medical services and diagnostics.

Future investment in Cavan General Hospital will be considered within the overall acute hospital infrastructure programme, the prioritised needs of the hospital groups and within the overall capital envelope available to the health service.

Project Ireland 2040 provides €10.9 billion for Health capital developments across the country, including both national programmes and individual projects, across acute, primary and social care. Health capital projects and programmes currently underway will continue. As to be expected with such a plan, many proposals are at an early stage and will require to progress through appraisal, planning design and tender before a firm timeline or funding required can be established.

The planning and management of future health expenditure is considered as part of the annual estimates and budgetary process which seeks to balance available funding across all service areas to achieve the best possible outcomes for the greatest number of service users and prioritise areas of greatest need.

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