Sinn Féin MLA Colm Gildernew has expressed concern at the ongoing long waiting times at Emergency Departments.

The chair of the health committee said:

“It is deeply concerning to see that waiting times at Emergency Departments continue to rise.

“This is not just a crisis facing Emergency Departments but a sign of the wider pressures on the health and social care system.

“It is clear that the hard working health and social care staff are struggling with the huge pressures.

“I am concerned that ongoing challenges with supporting people in their local GPs, getting social care packages, finding an inpatient bed and low staffing levels are all contributing to the increasing waiting times for Emergency Departments.

“Significant investment in health and social care services is needed for transformation to work and to address the ongoing crisis within health and social care.

“We need an end to the ten years of Tory cuts to public services which have created the crisis in our health and mental health services.

“For the Health Minister to address emergency waiting times, he needs the funding to transform the wider health and social care system.”