Almost 80 patients waiting over six months to be discharged from hospital

Seventy-nine people have been waiting more than six months to be discharged from hospital, according to the latest HSE figures.

A total of 382 people were waiting for more than one month to be discharged from hospitals across the country.

The figures were provided to Fianna Fáil TD John Curran by Minister for Health Simon Harris in response to a parliamentary question.

St James's Hospital and St Vincent's University Hospital had the highest number of people waiting to be discharged for more than six months (both had nine patients), followed by Wexford General Hospital (six), St Columcille's Hospital in Loughlinstown and Connolly Hospital in Blanchardstown (both five).

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Mr Curran called on the Minister to “immediately address” the delays.

The Dublin Mid-West TD said a shortage of home help packages and capacity issues in hospitals are “all linked and more needs to be done to free up hospital beds”.

“We do not have enough home help hours or step-down facilities. As a result, acute hospital beds are filled for longer than they should be, and emergency department wait times grow. More and more families in Dublin that are struggling to care for an elderly loved one are desperate for home support services,” he said.

“The government must do more to bring down the list of delayed discharges in hospitals. It is essential that home help targets are met. Older people want to be in their own homes and not to be stuck in hospitals which are already facing serious overcrowding pressures.”