ED Task Force Report: IHCA highlights need to address insufficient capacity and under-resourcing which is impacting on patient care
ED Task Force Report: IHCA highlights need to address insufficient capacity and under-resourcing which is impacting on patient care
Thursday 2 April 2015: The Irish Hospital Consultants Association (IHCA) has today welcomed the commitment of Minister Leo Varadkar to address the overcrowding in Emergency Departments and acute hospitals but it has warned that the proposed actions in the ED Task Force Report do not go far enough to deal properly with the unacceptable delays for patients.
Dr Gerard Crotty, IHCA President, said that “the targets in the Action Plan are not sufficient to address either the delays in admitting patients to acute hospitals or the number of patients that are on waiting lists for essential surgery and other procedures. While we welcome the Minister’s commitment to address the overcrowding and this Action Plan is a first step, I don’t believe that the inclusion of weak targets for patients on trolleys and delayed discharges is good for patients. If it is intended to achieve real and meaningful change then more aggressive targets are required together with the appropriate resources to provide sufficient capacity.
Dr Crotty said that based on international comparisons, Ireland’s acute hospitals have a low number of beds, consultants and doctors on a per capita basis. These factors are exacerbated by the failure of health service management to honour the terms of the 2008 Consultant Contract. This is impacting adversely on the availability of consultants who are needed to provide safe high quality care to patients.
Dr Crotty said the unacceptable delays being experienced by patients are attributable to the severe cuts in frontline resources over the past seven years. He said that it is essential that resources for frontline acute hospital services and post-acute care are increased to properly address the overcrowding and delays in acute hospitals.
ENDS
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