Overcrowding: TD says north Tipperary people 'deserve to get healthcare they need

Tipperary Sinn Féin TD Martin Browne has called on the Government to adopt a zero-tolerance approach to hospital overcrowding following the publication of the INMO’s Trolley Watch analysis for March.

The figures show an alarming increase at University Hospital Limerick, as 1,671 patients have been without a bed this March. This is the highest figure for the month of March on record.

University Hospital Limerick, along with Nenagh Hospital, Ennis Hospital and St John's, forms part of the University Hospital Limerick Group.

Deputy Browne demanded that the Minister for Health take charge of the situation and fix the root causes of emergency department dysfunction to ensure that people in north Tipperary can get the healthcare they need.

“I am very concerned by the high number of people waiting on trolleys at University Hospital Limerick. New figures show 1,671 people were without a bed this March at the hospital. This compares to 1,059 in March of last year and pre-Covid figures of 1,054 in March of 2019 and 1,022 on the same month in 2018, which was already worryingly high and unacceptable," he said.

The Cashel-based TD said that the Government must take a zero-tolerance approach to hospital overcrowding to ensure that people in north Tipperary can get the high quality and timely healthcare they need.

He called on Minister Donnelly to take charge of the situation, root out wasteful or poor management practices, and make sure that hospitals were able to adopt better patient management practices.

"This is not a new issue – patients have been suffering the torturous consequences of overcrowding for years," said Deputy Browne. “The root causes of emergency department dysfunction are poor patient flow, low hospital capacity, delayed discharges, poor out-of-hours GP coverage and a lack of alternatives in the community."

Deputy Browne said that while there was, without question, a need for more beds and more capacity in diagnostics and surgical theatres, that was not all.

“There are efficiency reforms that have worked in some hospitals to reduce overcrowding and reduce delays in discharging patients, such as specialist medical wards.

“Above all else, we need to join up community and hospital healthcare. Too often, hospitals are left trying to discharge a patient, but there is no recovery bed available for them. Regional Health Areas will help to streamline this process.

“The long festering problems in primary care and general practice, which are a direct result of not training enough doctors and allied health professionals, need to be dealt with," he said.

The Tipperary TD said that patients at University Hospital Limerick deserved better and the Government must do everything possible to address this crisis.