Hospital health hazards exposed

THE Government’s health funding policies have again come under attack following the exposure of a litany of vital equipment failures and hygiene problems in Irish hospitals.

Details emerged yesterday of a catalogue of serious deficiencies in the upkeep of equipment and health and safety standards ­ including the staggering revelation that essential heart treatment equipment at St Vincent’s Hospital in Dublin had failed in use 28 times this year.

Opposition parties responded by blaming the “appalling conditions” in Irish hospitals on poor planning and prioritisation by Government.