Hospital staffing and recruitment
Senator Ó Domhnaill seeks an urgent debate on hospitals threatened by the recruitment moratorium and unable to meet standards or rising demand.
The Leader might comment on that issue.
I also call on the Leader to arrange a debate with the Minister for Health on the future of hospitals throughout the country, many of which are under threat owing to the moratorium on recruitment. The Health Information and Quality Authority requires that a range of standards be implemented, but many hospitals do not have the staffing required to meet the demand. Given our ageing population, a phenomenon that will become more pronounced in the next ten years, I ask the Leader to arrange an urgent debate on this issue.