Sheehan slams Minister’s review on Emergency Care in Mid-West
- Urgent need for second ED
- Recruitment ban must be lifted
- Trolley numbers speak volumes
Labour’s Limerick Mayoral Candidate Councillor Conor Sheehan has slammed the Minister for Health’s announcement to initiate a review into urgent and emergency care capacity in the mid-west region, questioning the necessity of such a move when the need for a second Emergency Department (ED) is glaringly obvious to all.
Councillor Sheehan said
“It’s frankly insulting that the Minister feels the need to initiate a review when the people of Limerick and the mid-west have been screaming for a second ED for years. The chronic overcrowding and dangerously high trolley numbers at University Hospital Limerick (UHL) are not a mystery. They are a daily reality for patients and frontline workers.
“If the Minister was serious about tackling the crisis at UHL, he would immediately lift the recruitment ban to ensure the hospital is adequately staffed and resourced. It’s absurd to think that a review will somehow uncover information that isn’t already abundantly clear from the harrowing experiences of patients and the tireless efforts of our healthcare workers.
“Just last week, the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) warned that people are at serious risk when accessing emergency care at UHL. This review is nothing but a cynical move by the Minister for Health in the run-up to an election, attempting to appear proactive while failing to address the real issues at hand.
“The people of Limerick and the mid-west need more than lip service. They need a second ED, adequately staffed and resourced, to ensure their safety and well-being. Enough of the empty politicking, we need action.”