Beds at Monaghan Hospital were lying idle while local people were unable to secure stepdown facilities for their loved ones, Sinn Féin TD Matt Carthy said this week. Figures obtained by Deputy Carthy from Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll MacNeill TD showed that, while occupancy of the hospital’s rehabilitation and stepdown wards had been improving, only 20% of stepdown beds were utilised in November 2024 while 40% of such spaces had been unfilled in recent weeks.
“Since the removal of services from Monaghan Hospital by previous Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael governments, it has literally been a battle a day to ensure that our hospital has been utilised in advance of a full restoration and development of those services,” Deputy Carthy told the Northern Standard. “Monaghan Hospital has capacity for rehabilitation and stepdown patients. But, in recent months, this capacity has not been fulfilled. I have not yet received an adequate explanation for this.
“While it is welcome that utilisation of capacity has improved in recent months, for stepdown beds it is still far too low. We also need assurances that the issues that have caused the under-utilisation have been addressed. “In November last year just 20% of stepdown capacity was filled – a scandalous situation. While this has increased to 60% in the early weeks of 2025, that still means that 40% of bed spaces in the stepdown ward are unfilled. “Considering my office is dealing with dozens of families who are unable to secure stepdown facilities for their loved ones that remains unacceptable. This has an impact on the capacity in other mainstream hospital wards where patients cannot be released or on families who must bring members home without an adequate home support package…
