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THE IRISH MEDICAL Organisation (IMO) has said that the current crisis in hospitals “exposes the perilous state of Irish health services”.
Today, the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation’s trolley count this morning showed a new record high – the 2nd time this week – of 677 patients waiting on trolleys in public hospitals.
With Ireland currently experiencing the “flu season”, many emergency departments are experiencing very high numbers of patients presenting at hospital.
While opposition parties lined up to criticise the government, Health Minister Simon Harris said in a statement this evening that it’s “vital we begin to see an impact from the exceptional measures being undertaken in our emergency departments”.
“Not a temporary blip”
In a statement, the IMO said that solving the current high numbers of people on trolleys requires more beds, more consultants and more investment in GPs to allow more care for patients outside hospitals.
It said: “The shameful situation being experienced this week has its roots in years of underinvestment and cutbacks across the health service. This isn’t a flu crisis or a temporary blip… this chaos is the reality of our health services today.
Department of Health figures confirm that we are effectively running an emergency service only on a year-round basis with elective procedures now down to a trickle… We are only ever hours away from a crisis such as we are experiencing this week.
Similarly, the Irish Association for Emergency Medicine has said it is “gravely concerned but not surprised at what has transpired”.
“This was always going to be how 2018 started in our EDs. Everyone, from the Minister for Health to the clinician at the frontline knew it,” it said.
“Disgraceful”
Social Democrats TD Róisín Shortall described today’s record high as “disgraceful, predictable and avoidable”.
She said: “This latest trolley crisis is a national disgrace and is intolerable for both patients and staff – but it is also absolutely predictable. After a summer when our health services were on a knife-edge, it was inevitable that winter flu and other seasonal illnesses would push our hospitals beyond breaking point.”
Her comments were echoed by Labour’s Alan Kelly, and Sinn Féin’s Louise O’Reilly.
O’Reilly described Minister Harris’ use of lower HSE figures on the trolley crisis as “nothing short of pathetic”, while Kelly said there is “no point in blaming the flu outbreak for the current crisis”.
Planning ahead
In his statement this evening, Minister Harris said he wanted to recognise the “intense efforts of all our staff across the health service”, while acknowledging the “very difficult conditions” patients are experiencing at this time.
He said that he will be updated by each hospital group CEO on the situation tomorrow.
Harris said: “While recognising that there is no one-size-fits-all solution, we must continue to ensure the lessons that can be learned from those hospitals performing better are applied across the system.
I want to reassure the public that all the winter plan measures funded by increased investment by government, like increased access to home care, transitional care and diagnostics along with additional acute bed capacity, are being implemented to deal with the extra pressures our health service is experiencing.
The Minister added that the HSE has his support in any enhanced measures it seeks to take to help alleviate the current crisis.
Supports for older people
Another take on the solutions for the trolley situation came from older people’s charity Alone, which said that older people tend to end up in hospital more due to a lack of support in the community.
Its CEO, Sean Moynihan, said: “With 20,000 people turning 65 years of age each year, our current health system is not equipped to deal with this.
Often, older people are ending up in hospital unnecessarily… As people get older their health requires close monitoring and management. We should also note that there are 170,000 older Irish people living alone, which makes them vulnerable to isolation and ill health.
He said that the shortage of hospital beds is a “complex issue” without one solution, but that there are far more effective, economically viable and compassionate to having sick people on hospital trolleys.
“There are many older people who are well enough to be at home provided they have adequate support,” Moynihan said. “However, they cannot be discharged as there are no options of care available to them or their homes are not suitable adapted for their needs.”
It is hypocritical in the extreme that the US would speak of Security Council/UN resolutions being broken when it’s closet ally in the Middle East, breaks them or outright ignores them on a daily basis.
Also, lest the world forget, the US contributed to North Korea becoming a nuclear state when it turned a blind eye to Pakistani nuclear scientists assisting the North Koreans with nuclear knowledge and equipment claiming officially no such transfer was occurring when in reality it knew what was occurring but did not want to jeopardise relations with Pakistan.
Seoirse, are you sure your not b Lowe because you sound exactly like him. Go ahead and defend North Korea. You make a stupid argument!
They broke international shipping laws and got caught. Get over it.
”Go ahead and defend North Korea.”
He is not necessarily defending N Korea – just stating facts . If facts are too much for u – !!
Jim, saoirse, is stating this as fact. How does he know what went on?
B Lowe talking through his …. again. If is ant-British or anti-US Lowe will be there.
I think b Lowe has a new identity
Correction Pauric, even if its an unrelated topic, if an anti-UK or anti-US slant can somehow be put on it, no matter how tenuous, BLowe will be there…
”, if an anti-UK or anti-US slant can somehow be put on it, no matter how tenuous, BLowe will be there…”
the problem is that with the way the US /UK and many countries in the West behave – it is easy to knock their many illegal actions . Not too many countries have a President who openly boasts of his Murder List .
The west – and US in particular seem to be going out of their way to create enemies – maybe they do that on purpose -to keep the Arms trade going and the money.
Jim, really? Would you like to comment on the illegal activities of North Korea. I believe it has its own arms trade. Also money laundering.
Check it all out and get back to us.
How about the arms trading done by Sweden, France, Austria, Russia amongst others.
But for you and your ilk it’s always the same ole anti- US RANT’
@Jim
Yes, but this article is about an illegal ams shipment from Cuba to North Korea, and the Panamanian response after uncovering it!
Its a bit like the people who twist almost every article on TJ to make a comment about our bankers and politicians!
Its wrong for Cuba to export arms – to N Korea – but ok for US ,UK and France to export to wherever they wish eg Saudi Arabia , Syria ,Iran Israel etc – .
BBC this morning reported that UK govt had issued 3,000 licenses [ value £ 12 Billion ] for arms export to several countries eg China , Iran, Saudi Arabia , Israel- – but that all legal and ok -
——— total hypocrisy once again – but will make good headlines on Fox and keep US population in more fear – a difficult feat .
The difference is that the US ,UK France etc are not hiding their sales in shiploads of Sugar. They are following international trade rules.
”They are following international trade rules.”
— which they write themselves !!
…typical, 2 dodgy dictatorships got caught dealing in spare parts for nuclear weapons but people can’t resist the opportunity to ‘America bash’
Cuba is one cheeky little k^^t
What is a k^^t?
Same as a C^^T
Knight. Cuba is a cheeky little knight.
Sure those were just props for parades
Obvious dry run
The North Koreans seized a small US navy ship years ago, they refused to give it back and now take what few tourists they get on tours of it, rubbing the US noses in the fact they kept the vessel. This cargo ship should be kept also, not necessarily because of the US ship being kept but to show NK that any ship found to be smuggling prohibited weapons “regardless of which country owns the vessel” or components will be seized. lets see how they will get contracts for shipping illegal weapons then. its the right thing to do, this dictatorship is starving its own people while buying illegal weapons to threaten the rest of the world. something needs to be done to stop it, no more words, action is needed.
Equipment was not listed on the manifest and was hidden under tons of sugar and sure tis old anyway me arse …… Cuba should not send to that madcap country god only knows what they will do with it . Seize the ship and sell it to pay for the upgrading work in Panama and warn Cuba and North Korea that in future if they try this the ship will be seized and they will lose the cargo . Do it legitimate like everyone else . As regards the crew 10 years in bars minimum , they knew what they were carting by their carry on and 20 for the captain . This will send the right message .
Wow! We are in the ha’penny place…
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