Pressure on health service could see hospitals short 3,000 beds by end of decade

IHCA president Prof Rob Landers said while the Government planned to open 261 acute beds in 2023, only 162 were additional beds. Picture: ihca.ie

Ireland’s overstretched public health service could be short a staggering 3,000 hospital beds by the end of the decade, causing waiting lists to spiral, an expert has warned.

Population growth and increased demand for care are set to heap pressure on the already creaking health service, a researcher with the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) said, with hospitals facing an immediate deficit of 1,000 inpatient beds, and an additional requirement for 300 hospital beds each year to address that growth and increased demand.