Morris Disturbed By Depths Health Service Allowed To Sink
Sinn Féin’s Tipperary General Election candidate Cllr. Séamie Morris has expressed his horror at stories he has heard whilst canvassing about the health service in Tipperary. He was speaking while canvassing in Cashel, before heading on to Templemore.
Cllr Morris said: “I hear more and more stories as I canvass that would shock any normal person. I’ve heard of people with catheters waiting hours for bags to be replaced, and people on trollies overnight. There have been stories of people abandoned in the secure unit in Clonmel for hours without food, and stories of stroke patients falling outside the ‘golden hour’ for ambulance support.”
“Easily the most upsetting is the story of one woman who worked for years in Nenagh hospital and now retired, herself left on a trolley when she herself needed care. I met her son coming out from the hospital with tears in his eyes at the indignity that woman was subjected to after so many years of loyal service.”
“The health service has gone from bad to worse in the last number of years. This didn’t happen overnight. There is pressure on spaces at present with the flu season, but even that’s as a result of repeated ward closures, not just the sudden influx of illness.”
“We were promised a world-class health service, and all we’ve had is employment embargoes and cut-backs. This has happened while Labour were propping up the Fine Gael policy of two-tier health support.”
“Labour has traditionally been pointed out as the party that would care for the elderly and the weak, and as a counter-balance to the right-wing heartlessness of Fine Gael. They have failed in that role, as they have failed in so much else.”
“During a radio interview last Friday I wasn’t surprised when Minister Kelly let slip that Labour has a two-tier approach to election promises. He said “the one promise we did make, a real promise we made, is that we would put the country into recovery” – which clearly means that there are ‘real’ promises, with presumably all the rest of the promises being unreal. I think even a child would describe that as lying. As Pat Rabbite once said of his promises, “isn’t that what you do during an election?”. Clearly, Kelly, Rabitte and Labour are on the one page about honesty at election time.”
“If you have a loved-one who’s ill, or need care yourself, you might be tempted to vote Labour when they promise to look after you. Don’t. Don’t be fooled. The level of anger at Kelly that has been expressed when canvassing in Cahir and surrounds tells me his reputation has preceded him down there.”
“I find myself disturbed at the levels our health service has been allowed to sink to. But can we be surprised at the inherent unfairness of our two-tier health service, when the Labour party have a two-tier approach to honesty and their commitments at election time?”