Sinn Féin slams hospital underfunding

Recruitment freeze impacting on services

Tipperary Sinn Féin TD Martin Browne and Nenagh SF representative Damian O Donoghue have questioned how the Minister for Health expects to address the absolute crisis at University Hospital Limerick while at the same time the health service is now being underfunded, resulting in a decision to freeze recruitment for certain frontline posts.

Teachta Browne said: “Yet again, UHL trolley figures reached new heights on Monday [week last], with 130 people without a bed. At the same time, health workers, patients and their families are also dealing with the fact that a recruitment freeze is being implemented because of the deliberate underfunding of our health services in budget 2024.

“It’s impossible to understand how, at a time of record demand on the services of UHL, the funding needed to cover the true cost of running the HSE has been withheld. The improvement in services across the region, which we were promised, and which is a necessity for the Mid-West, have not been delivered, and judging by the attitude the government has shown in underfunding the health service for 2024, it is going to get worse.”

Mr O Donoghue said: “When the emergency department was taken away from Nenagh, we were promised a centre of excellence. Instead, the people of North Tipperary and the Mid-West in general have been faced with a centre of chaos because the capacity promised for Limerick wasn’t delivered.

“Nenagh, Ennis and St John’s hospitals have recently been given more of a role in taking the pressure of UHL, but this is clearly still falling short of having the desired effect on presentation levels at UHL because we have so much to make up for.

“We need more home care medical services and procedures in the community. While some measures have been taken, they are clearly not enough, and people are telling me that every day. But we also need to know if the poor budget allocation to health will make matters even worse and impact projects designed to deliver capacity within UHL and facilities across the region.”

Teachta Browne said: “We need clarity on whether the budget will impact on capital projects designed to deliver capacity at UHL, elsewhere in the Mid-West, or elsewhere in Tipperary such as Tipperary University Hospital. And, with care in the community being an important factor in addressing the pressures on UHL, it is concerning to see that certain staff who are more likely to work within the community are subject to the recruitment freeze.

“We need to see the further expansion of multi-disciplinary primary and community care services alongside community intervention teams.”