Children under six ‘being referred too often to A&E’

The number of children aged under six referred to emergency departments (ED) by their doctor has jumped dramatically, and as much as 55% at one large GP co-op, according to its medical director.

Dr Gary Stack, of SouthDoc, an out-of-hours service in Cork and Kerry, said the finding was both “unexpected and shocking”. He attributed it to “GP burnout”.

“GPs are now so busy, both in-hours and out-of-hours, that they are no longer in a position, or have the time, to put in that extra bit of work to, for example, review the patient later on that evening, and they take the less risky option of referring,” he said.