It is great to have the Minister in the House this morning. I very much welcome the opportunity to have a discussion of a practical nature that will solve this issue and have really positive impacts on patients, staff and the wider health service across the north east. The minor injury unit in Louth County Hospital, Dundalk, is one of the best services in the country. It serves the people of Louth well and we are immensely proud of it and grateful for it. I have spent many a Saturday there when my sons have been injured. We are very grateful that we do not have to go to Drogheda. Day after day, patients receive excellent care from dedicated doctors, nurses, radiographers, administrative staff and support staff. They are professional, effective and really efficient. I want to recognise all of them in this House. The unit's reputation is such that people regularly travel there from well beyond Louth. There were lots of Dublin accents to be heard in the accident and emergency department when I was there last Saturday. They did not even know that Louth was playing on Sunday. It was all about Dublin. People are travelling from north Dublin to County Louth because our minor injuries clinic is so good. As the Minister will know, the unit opens from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. seven days a week. It provides a really vital alternative to a really busy emergency department for patients with fractures, sprains, burns, wounds and other minor injuries. It is exactly the type of service we should continue to invest in. It has the same goal as many of us, which is to deliver the right care in the right place at the right time. There is one significant limitation, however. That is why I am speaking here this morning. It is slowing down or delaying some of the excellent work that is being carried out. At weekends, the X-ray department only operates from 12 noon until 8 p.m. As a result, people who attend in the morning can face unnecessary delays while waiting for imaging. Those delays inevitably increase waiting times, creating frustration, and place additional pressure on staff who are doing everything possible with the resources available to them. This lack of service before 12 noon has a negative knock-on effect. This is not a resourcing issue. I hope it can be looked at and addressed. We all know that weekends are a really busy time for injuries units as a result of sporting events and family activities. Every patient who can successfully be treated in Dundalk is one less patient for another hospital to treat. Extending X-ray availability across the entire opening hours of the minor injuries unit seven days a week would improve patient flow, reduce waiting times, enhance the patient experience and further reduce the pressure on the emergency department in Drogheda. For that reason, I ask the Minister to examine the recruitment of an additional radiographer to allow full radiography cover throughout the unit's opening hours every day of the week. This is not about creating a new service. It is about strengthening and extending a service we already have. Gabhaim buíochas leis an Minister. I hope her response will be positive.

Sentiment score: 0.21

It is very rare one gets a really positive response like that in the House. This is great news for everyone in the entire north east. As I said, the minor injury clinic in Dundalk is an incredible resource for all families and people who live in the area. This is really positive news which shows that the work of the staff in Louth County Hospital in Dundalk has been seen to be successful. The HSE and the Minister are going to invest in that success in order to make sure that the clinic can maintain and expand its excellent services at weekends. I very much appreciate the Minister's work in this area and thank her for it.

Sentiment score: 0.56