Late hospital discharges jump by 30%, claims FG

FIGURES show a 30% increase in the number of patients not being discharged from hospital on time — and hence unnecessarily taking up hospital beds.

According to figures published by Fine Gael, up to 85% of the patients who were unnecessarily kept in hospital last year are aged 65 and over.

Late discharge of patients has long been blamed for the country’s lack of hospital beds and overcrowded A&Es. The need for prompt discharge has been a repeated theme of HSE chief executive Brendan Drumm since he took up his position. These latest figures suggest his policies have failed.