An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business
Seanad Éireann — 2026-01-29
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Anne Rabbitte (FF), Nominated by the Taoiseach

County Galway needs a stand-alone minor injuries unit. It has a population of 362,000. Limerick, Dundalk and Cork all have stand-alone minor injuries units. There are only nine of them in the country. Our nearest one is in Roscommon. While I appreciate the valuable work done in Roscommon, I have no doubt the staff are serving the population of their own county while also trying to support Galway, Mayo and Offaly. In a county the size of Galway, with its population of 362,000, a stand-alone minor injuries unit would meet a great need.
Our pathways for accessing primary care for injuries at the moment are Westdoc, which is our local GP service, and the accident and emergency unit, for which one must queue. Tremendous work is being done in the accident and emergency department. It has a pathway for minor injuries but people must go through the same front door as those with emergencies. If we had a stand-alone minor injuries unit, it would treat not only those who have had trips and falls, of which I have had experience in the past week, but also those with burns. Many can be catered for through a minor injuries unit, so there is a great need for one.
The pathway in Galway should be a minor injuries unit. It should be trialled. The emergency department pathway is working, but it should be stand-alone. I would welcome comment from the Minister for Health on this. Maybe this is a matter for a Commencement debate. There is a genuine need.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2026-01-29/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:34+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-01-29