Bed closures will lead to cancelled procedures and longer waiting lists – Reilly

The Government is presiding over the closure of almost a quarter of the hospital beds in the country, the Fine Gael Health Spokesperson, Dr James Reilly, has claimed. HSE figures show that there are over 1,500 beds closed or unavailable around the country for a variety of reasons including delayed discharges.
Three hundred and thirty-three more beds are closed due to cost savings, infection control or refurbishment than were closed this time last year.

“Together with the 1,100 closures the HSE is planning, this means that almost a quarter of our hospital beds will be closed,” said Dr Reilly.
He said the inevitable result would be more patients on trolleys, more cancelled operations and longer waiting lists.
“Long-term facilities that are publicly funded are also facing the Government’s axe. This makes no sense when these long-stay beds are going to be needed to care for people who are stranded in acute beds. How can the HSE confidently predict a positive impact from the Fair Deal if long-stay beds are being closed down?”