Mayo University Hospital 'dangerously vulnerable' ahead of winter says Mayo TD

A Mayo TD has stated that Mayo University Hospital is heading into winter in a ‘dangerously vulnerable position.’

Speaking during a Dáil debate on Tuesday, November 3, on a motion concerning healthcare staffing, Deputy Rose Conway-Walsh criticised the Minister of Health, Jennifer Carroll MacNeill’s response, arguing that claims of improvements under the safe staffing framework did not reflect the reality facing patients and healthcare workers in Mayo.

The Sinn Féin TD stated that only 42 per cent of patients attending the hospital's emergency department were being seen within the six-hour target, describing the situation as unacceptable as the hospital prepares for the winter period.

Deputy Conway-Walsh also highlighted the pressure on hospital staff, claiming exhausted workers were being expected to carry out the work of several people because of ongoing staffing shortages.

The Mayo TD also expressed full support for public sector workers taking industrial action in pursuit of a fair pay deal, saying staff had been left with little choice but to take action to address their working conditions.

She further described the situation as part of a wider national patient safety crisis rather than simply a staffing problem.

The Minister for Health was also criticised over a previous commitment made last January, following the death of Stephen Lavelle, who died while waiting for an ambulance.

She also stated that the Minister had promised that such a situation would not happen again. However, they claimed that another patient had recently waited six hours for an ambulance while experiencing chest pains.

The Mayo TD stated that ambulance delays were being compounded by pressure within hospital emergency departments, with ambulances unable to transfer patients because of a lack of available staff and capacity.

Concerns were also raised about recruitment restrictions at Mayo University Hospital.

The representative claimed that young nurses had been offered positions and had given up existing employment in preparation for taking up their new roles, only to subsequently be informed that the appointments could not proceed because of restrictions imposed at national level.

Describing the situation as “absolute chaos”, they questioned why positions were being offered to staff if the hospital was ultimately unable to take them on.

Deputy Conway-Walsh concluded by warning that conditions at the hospital had deteriorated despite previous assurances from the Minister for Health that improvements would be made.

With winter only beginning, the Sinn Féin TD warned that Mayo University Hospital was already under severe pressure and questioned how the health service would cope with the demands of the coming months.