Government Closes 8 A&Es in 10 Years and Wonders Why We Have A&E Overcrowding - Tóibín

Wednesday, 28 December 2022 16:37

By Clem Ryan

""Currently 897,300 people on a hospital waiting list in this country", he says.

As A&Es experience record overcrowding throughout the state, Hospital Campaigner and Aontú Leader Peadar Tóibín TD lays the blame at the door of the HSE and FF and FG government’s, for closing eight A&Es in the last 10 years. He stated:

“Its not rocket science. You cannot close eight A&Es in 10 years, during a period of significantly increasing population without creating chaos throughout the A&E system. It amazes me that with all the commentary of the disastrous A&E crisis, that the most obvious contributing factor, the closure of so many A&Es is seldom discussed.

"Louth County Hospital, Monaghan, St. Colmcille’s Loughlinstown, Mallow, Bantry, Ennis, Nenagh, St. John’s Limerick, Roscommon County Hospital all had their A&Es closed in just over a decade.

"The HSE and Governments promised extra capacity elsewhere. But it never happened. In 2008 there were 21,789 hospital beds in Ireland. 14 years later that reduced to 14,412 beds. That’s a fall of 7,377 in the number of beds open in this state in just 14 years. And remember during that collapse in bed numbers since 2008, the population has increased by over 200,000 people. We have well below the EU average in the number of hospital beds at 269 beds for 100,000 people as opposed to the EU average of 387 hospital beds per 100,000 people.

"120,000 people waiting on trollies so far this year. T.

"Currently 897,300 people on a hospital waiting list in this country.

"Last year there were 105,000 adverse incidents in the health care system last year a significant jump from in the last number of years.

The state has paid €2billion in medical negligence claims in just 5 years. Money that should have been invested in front line resources".