Patient discharges were delayed 552 times at Letterkenny University Hospital last year due to a lack of step-down services.
A shortage of home help carers, step-down beds and beds for older persons receiving rehabilitation created the significant backlog throughout the year.
The highest amount of patients were kept in hospital as they waited on space in a Community Nursing unit/District Hospital/HSE facility. This was the reason for 357 delayed discharges from LUH last year.
The data was shared with Cllr Gerry Crawford today at a meeting of the Regional Health Forum West, where a staffing shortfall was identified.
Cllr Crawford said he knew of one person waiting from June until last week to go home because there was no provision of services. The case, he said, was not straightforward but demonstrated the seriousness of the delays.
“I know that hours are been approved but the actions are not activated because of a lack of staff,” Cllr Crawford said.
He said there is concern surrounding a letter issued to some patients recently.
The letter from the HSE says that due to extensive waiting lists and the changeable nature of home support, the HSE is not in a position to provide an estimated time for when home help support may become available.
The letter read by Cllr Crawford to the meeting was received by a person waiting on home help services for 90 minutes a day.
The patient was asked to refrain from contacting their local office during the waiting period.
“If people are stressed and cannot contact an element of the HSE to ask a question, I think that is wrong,” Cllr Crawford said.
