ED should be a last resort at Christmas, urges HSE

With pressure on emergency departments (EDs) building and influenza rates rising, the head of the HSE’s emergency medicine programme has appealed for people not to make the ED their first port of call at Christmas.

In addition, Dr Gerry McCarthy, a consultant in emergency medicine at Cork University Hospital (CUH), said there were a number of steps people could follow to make their journey through the ED “a less unpleasant experience”.

“People often forget to bring the letter from their GP. Or they don’t always know the medication they are on. We need this, so as not to prescribe something that conflicts with what they are already taking, or to avoid giving a second dose. It also gives us a better idea of what the patient is suffering from.”