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THE HSE HAS said preparations are underway for the “highest pressure on the State’s health service that has ever been seen” due to the surge in winter virus infections.
It comes as the Executive has expressed concern that it expects to see over 900 patients in hospital with flu in the first week in January, while a higher number of hospitalisations have occurred than had been anticipated in its “more pessimistic projections”.
With those numbers expected to continue to rise rapidly in the coming few weeks, it has established a National Crisis Management Team (NCMT) to oversee the health service for the surge.
This group, composed of senior health service leadership including representatives of hospital groups and community healthcare organisations, has met twice this week and intends to operate throughout the Christmas period.
Yesterday, the Chief Medical Officer Prof Breda Smyth urged the public to stay at home if they develop Covid-19 or flu-like symptoms in the run-up to Christmas Day, as Covid-19 cases began to mount.
As of 8am today, there were 656 people in hospital with Covid-19, 26 of whom are confirmed cases in ICU.
There are approximately 1,200 people currently hospitalised with respiratory conditions.
“This surge in respiratory illnesses will seriously impact our hospitals and Emergency Departments, and will place primary care services such as GP and GP out-of-hours services under further pressure,” the HSE warned, while its chief executive similarly warned of the demand that is set to hit the health service.
“It is now looking increasingly likely that we will see the demand for health services rising well above anything we have seen before,” Stephen Mulvany said in a statement released this evening.
“It is therefore critical that we continue to prepare to the maximum level possible for the projected further surge in demand for services in late December and early January – over and above the current high level of demand.
“We are working to ensure that every available resource is mobilised and utilised to respond to the needs of our patients who are seeking urgent and emergency care.”
Mulvaney urged all who are eligible for and due to be vaccinated to do so as soon as possible.
“Our services around the country have made and are implementing plans to address the forthcoming pressure,” he added. “The role of the NCMT will be to give them support and to provide national overview and action when appropriate.”
Mulvaney said that over the coming period the HSE’s senior leaders will visit hospitals and other healthcare sites around the country “to see and understand the situation at first hand and to offer support.”
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How about making a serious attempt at our chronic overcrowding and disgraceful waiting times for appointments.
Public sector responsible for 1.4% of greenhouse gasses and 99.4% of Public let down and failures
@Mark Dawson: I see from your profile that you’re formally of the public sector yourself, how many public let downs and failures have you contributed to so?
@Mark Dawson: 72% of stats made up on the spot. :-)
@D. Memery: what public sector do you refer to? And I be happy to explain
@D. Memery: my post references the powers that be and not meant to be interepted as the average worker class , who has no input in policy or the actions they instructed to carry out, it’s government level and senior management I reference
@Mark Dawson: you profile appears to show you formally served in the armed forces, and I believe your profile picture is from a veterans association. Whilst such service is without a doubt to be commended, are the armed forces not in fact part of the public service which you highlight as being responsible for a significant level of let-down? Based upon your service, can you enlighten us upon how the public service, in your experience, managed to achieve such a level?
Headline show be “No HSE plan in place”
@Jules: Should be
Anaesthesia gases account for 4% of global warming. They generally consist of halogenated hydrocarbon structures, with long atmospheric half-lives. Presently, these gases are vented from the operating room and simply released on the roof of the hospital – direct to the atmosphere – like effluent into a stream.
However, there are multiple alternatives; most simply recycling – a Canadian firm has been recycling these vapours for almost 10 years now, with approx. 50% of hospitals there utilising the system. There are also operator dependent techniques which can reduce usage by up to 90% on surgeries lasting more than 1 hour – which are not being utilised.
“Anaesthesia gases account for 4% of global warming”
It does?, pity there is no scientific evidence to support this claim.
https://www.drroyspencer.com/2022/02/uah-global-temperature-update-for-january-2022-0-03-deg-c/
@John Kennedy: There is ample evidence in multiple medical and scientific journals. A former NASA scientist who spreads misinformation cannot change facts. I believe he is also of the Flat Earth society – strange that he would work for NASA – but perhaps not that they agreed to part ways.
@John Kennedy: It interests me that despite having been advised of relevant science to gain your own insight – you continue to be so short-sighted. You can lead a horse to water…
@Juniper: From tthe University of Alabama Huntsville website
“Dr. John R. Christy is the Distinguished Professor of Atmospheric Science and Director of the Earth System Science Center at The University of Alabama in Huntsville where he began studying global climate issues in 1987. Since November 2000 he has been Alabama’s State Climatologist. In 1989 Dr. Roy W. Spencer (then a NASA/Marshall scientist and now a Principal Research Scientist at UAH) and Christy developed a global temperature data set from microwave data observed from satellites beginning in 1979. For this achievement, the Spencer-Christy team was awarded NASA’s Medal for Exceptional Scientific Achievement in 1991. In 1996, they were selected to receive a Special Award by the American Meteorological Society “for developing a global, precise record of earth’s temperature from operational polar-orbiting satellites, fundamentally advancing our ability to monitor climate.” In January 2002 Christy was inducted as a Fellow of the American Meteorological Society.”
Flat earth society my ar$E
@John Kennedy: your original citation was of Sr Roy Spencer. Make up your mind… you mindless m0r0n
Maybe cut management salaries so they can only afford smaller, more fuel-efficient cars and maybe cut down on management in general so there are fewer people driving to hospital and back every day?
Focussing on how to improve on his €400,000 A year pay.
Will Paul Reid be the last man in Ireland to take off his face nappy?
Well articulated Dr Rakovac. We all need to accept that this is a problem of our creation and that it is up to each one of us to sort it out.
have your say