Consultants: Health system crumbling; More than 589,000 people on waiting lists

Ireland’s healthcare system is crumbling with overstretched acute hospitals attempting to treat patients with equipment that is increasingly obsolete, consultants have warned.

A report from the Irish Hospital Consultants Association paints a bleak picture of a health service with more than 589,000 people on waiting lists and no sign of a decrease in these numbers.

IHCA president Dr Tom Ryan was extremely pessimistic when he launched the association’s pre-budget submission yesterday.