Fianna Fáil TD for Mayo Dara Calleary says he’s shocked by new figures which reveal that the number of patients on trolleys at Mayo University Hospital has increased by a massive 1650% since 2014. The stats from the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation show there were 10 people on trolleys during August 2014, increasing to 105 in 2016 and escalating to 175 just last month.
Deputy Calleary commented, “The scale of these increases is truly shocking and points to systemic deficiencies in our health service. Patients are suffering because successive Fine Gael Ministers have starved health of essential funding and the cracks which have been emerging over the past number of years are now full scale crises.
“A 1650% increase in trolley numbers is staggering and should be a major cause for concern. However, the Government appears to be turning a blind eye to the situation. It’s even delayed its planned announcement of a winter initiative to deal with emergency department overcrowding.
“This is bad news for Mayo. The hospital has seen services seriously depleted – waiting lists are soaring, there have been a series of surgery cancellations, and some specialities have been transferred to Galway University Hospital. It appears that Mayo is no longer a priority.
“Clearly, things are getting worse and I am calling on the Minister for Health and the HSE to pay special attention to our hospital and ensure that extra resources and personnel are provided. We cannot allow the situation at Mayo to deteriorate further, services are already at breaking point and unless the problems urgently addressed, lives will be put at risk”.
