Minister blames over 75s for A&E overcrowding

High demand for beds at University Hospital Galway – particularly from those aged over 75 – was the reason for significant overcrowding in the Emergency Department, according to the Minister for Health.

Minister Simon Harris said HSE figures showed there were 783 patients left waiting on trolleys at the ED in April – and increase of 22% from 643 in April 2018.

He was responding to a written Dáil question from Galway West TD Éamon Ó Cuív, who asked the reason for the “significant overcrowding in the ED at UHG during April”.

The Minister said that during the first quarter of this year, the number of patients attending the ED increase by more than 8% on the same period last year.

He said the HSE’s Winter Plan for 2019/20 (preparing for additional pressures associated with the winter period, such as increased presentations of older people, flu and vomiting bugs) will ‘learn lessons’ from last winter.

“The Winter Plan 2018/19, recognising the multiple factors across the health service that impact on Emergency Department performance, included a range of measures to support patients accessing services in the community and in hospitals.

“Planning for Winter 2019/20 has already commenced, with a review of performance over the Winter Period currently underway to ensure that the lessons learned from this year inform future plans.

“With regard to UHG, for the first quarter of 2019, in comparison to 2018, the number of patients attending the Emergency Department increased by 8.4% and the number of patients admitted decreased by 0.3%. The number of patients recorded on trolleys at 8am reduced by 7.9%.

“Unfortunately, the improved trolley performance did not continue into April and provisional data highlights that the number of patients waiting on trolleys in UHG increased from 643 in April 2018 to 783 in April 2019,” said the Minister.

He explained that data in relation to attendance and admissions for April is not available yet.

“However, the HSE has advised that hospitals are reporting very high levels of demand, high patient acuity and high bed occupancy, especially in the over 75-year-old cohort of patients.

“In addition, delayed discharges are above the expected activity threshold set out in the National Service Plan and Hospitals and Community Health Organisations are reporting constrained options for supported discharges, particularly in relation to home support and long-term care.

“Building upon the actions in the Winter Plan, and to meet the ongoing operational challenges, robust planning arrangements were put in place for the Easter and May bank holiday weekends by Hospital Groups and Community Health Organisations, and efforts are continuing to build upon the improved performance achieved nationally and in UHG in the first three months of the year,” the Minister said in his written response.