Madam, - I have just enjoyed three weeks' holiday in your beautiful country of Ireland. I was called back from England, where I was visiting friends before returning to Australia. My son, who lives and works in Ireland, was desperately ill in hospital with septicaemia.
My son suffers from haemachromatosis. Some three months ago, he went into hospital for a liver biopsy. During this procedure, his gall bladder was punctured. This required immediate surgery and a six-day stay in hospital.
Two weeks ago, a pick line was inserted in his arm so that blood could be taken three times a week to treat the haemachromatosis. The end result of this intervention was septicaemia. All this could be understood as bad luck or, as that leeched-out medical term describes it, "adverse events".
However my feelings of "bad luck" turned to shock and anger when I saw the state of the Accident and Emergency department of the hospital. There were desperately ill people sitting in chairs for lack of trolleys and an overworked, tired staff working in a grubby basement.
For three days, my dangerously ill son sat in a chair. He was able to lie down only when a trolley became available and then had to vacate it when a greater emergency arose.
Having achieved a trolley at 3 a.m. on the first night, he fell into deep sleep and woke up to find that his wallet had been stolen. A report to the local Garda station produced the bored response, "Oh, it happens all the time". After four days in Accident and Emergency my son was finally transferred to a ward.
I believe this hospital has had €10 million removed from its budget, that there are 50 beds closed and that 70 beds are occupied by patients who should have nursing home care.
I have no criticism of the staff of this hospital. They have been completely professional and unfailingly kind. My question is: How can the people of this country, dubbed the Celtic Tiger, where such economic gains have been made, tolerate such a dysfunctional health system? Where has the money gone? - Yours, etc.,
KATE NELSON, Canterbury, Australia.