HSE accused in Mayo of 'setting up a perfect trolley crisis'

"If they had wanted to design a trolley crisis, the HSE couldn't have done any better than how they are planning for this winter."

That's according to Castlebar Independent local election candidate, Harry Barrett.

Barrett was speaking as the numbers of patients on trolleys in Mayo University Hospital climbed steeply this week, with 25 patients without a bed recorded on Monday and 23 today.

Barrett maintains that the lack of a winter plan and the current budget embargo will seriously impact on the trolley numbers in the coming weeks.

He continued: "We were promised that the trolley crisis would improve this winter and that we would not break records like we did last winter, but it seems we have a HSE that doesn't really care. They have failed to provide a winter plan to deal with our trolley crisis in Mayo University hospital.

"On top of that, they have imposed budget restrictions that will seriously affect the hiring of the necessary staff to deal with the extra numbers. This is now affecting the administration of the accident and emergency unit and will cause major difficulties in the weeks ahead.

"Finally, no real effort has been made to increase diagnostic services in our district hospitals so that people could attend locally without having to be constantly referred to the accident and emergency unit by weekend agencies like Westdoc. In the absence of any improvement in GP numbers in the county, this is very slipshod and unprofessional.

"Having an older person on a trolley, for hours on end, in a noisy, bright day ward is a very dangerous thing and has been proven to affect their health outcomes. Also, we see a rise in child numbers attending at present, due to viral illness and this is very worrying.

"I am calling now on government TD's in this county to demand that government drops the budget embargo, that they resolve the industrial dispute affecting staff in Mayo University Hospital and that they demand that the Minister for Health provides the necessary resources to allow older people and children to be seen locally in District Hospitals.

"This is the bare minimum needed now to bring some control to the increasing numbers.

"Hard working staff and sick elderly patients cannot be left in constant crisis and chaos again this winter."