Ireland’s Great, Unless You’re Sick. Episode 491

In this episode, host Niall sits down with social media commentator and election candidate Elaine Mullally to unpack the latest shocking revelations about Ireland’s health system.

A new investigation has found that none of Ireland’s nine hospitals providing post-surgery breast cancer treatment have met the target of starting chemotherapy within eight weeks. In Letterkenny University Hospital, only 13% of patients received treatment on time. Nationally, delays are leaving women waiting for care that could be vital to survival.

The Minister for Health, Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, has admitted there is “no point” in promising more staff while the HSE struggles with a persistent recruitment crisis—with over 6,000 funded posts unfilled.

Niall asks Elaine the hard questions:

Why is the HSE failing patients so badly?

Is this about mismanagement, underfunding, poor staff retention, or political weakness?

And why has every health minister for decades seemed powerless to fix Ireland’s health system?