HSE chief executive defends pace of reforms

HSE chief executive Bernard Gloster has defended the pace of reforms benefitting patients, saying hospitals have seen an overall 20% drop in people on trolleys waiting for a bed. Picture: Sasko Lazarov/Photocall Ireland

HSE chief executive Bernard Gloster has defended the pace of reforms benefitting patients, saying hospitals have seen an overall 20% drop in people on trolleys waiting for a bed.

During the HSE's Integrated Care conference in Dublin on Thursday, Mr Gloster said improvements remain a priority for him.

He said that previously while "we were very good at designing what we needed to do, we weren’t necessarily fast enough at the pace at which we implemented it." 

He insisted the fallen trolley count was not due to “any hooky measure of data”, saying: "(this) has decreased by 20% despite the fact that there’s been a minimum 10% increase in people turning up at our emergency departments". 

While gaps in supports mean around 350 patients are delayed in hospitals daily even though they are recovered, he said this is down from 550 last year.

He acknowledged long waiting lists for elective operations, despite 180,000 more people taken off lists last year than the year before.

“We are reducing times way down, we’re gone down from a uniform average of 10 months to 7.2 months. We’ve almost eradicated what used to be talked about – the concept of people waiting four years,” he said.

He told reporters afterwards that he accepted pressures remain on University Hospital Limerick and said “these are being worked through”.

Figures from the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation show that while trolley numbers have dropped significantly, Thursday's total of 76 in UHL was the highest nationally.  

Tragic death

Work continues around a report by former Justice Frank Clarke on the tragic death of Aoife Johnston, 16, at UHL he said.

“It is my desire that the report in an appropriate form is published, and I hope to be able to do that perhaps in the coming weeks,” he said, saying he contacted the family’s legal team on Wednesday.

He could not comment on disciplinary proceedings, but said: “There has been no finding against any individual at this time. The appropriate response to the issue of accountability will be addressed, it is being addressed.” 

He expects another report by a three-person expert team advising UHL will be published.

Health minister Stephen Donnelly also spoke, in conversation with former RTÉ broadcaster Sean O’ Rourke.

Integrating hospital and community services is leading to shorter waiting times, he said, but acknowledged “it is not everywhere”.

Cataract waiting times in Dublin have gone from six years to 12 months, he said.

“And in Cork it hasn’t happened yet,” he said, pointing to a recent move of services to the South Infirmary Victoria University Hospital and a new clinic in Ballincollig which will bring improvements.

Mr O’ Rourke raised health union warnings that staff vacancies from 2023 are not being filled even though the hiring freeze is lifted.

Mr Donnelly, to loud muttering from the audience of HSE staff, said: “I don’t buy that. I know in individual teams that is true.” 

However overall, he said last year the HSE was funded to hire 6,000 new staff but added 8,000.