33 critical in ‘Swine Flu’ outbreak in North : Health Minister missing on the job?

Michelle O'Neill MLA

THERE are 33 people in a critical condition in the North from the resurgence of ‘Swine Flu’ but it seems that Health Minster Michael McGimpsey has ‘gone missing on the job', Sinn Féin vice-chair of the Assembly Health Committee has said.

Michelle O’Neill MLA said there were 33 people this week suffering from Swine Flu and last month there were 185 people being treated for the virus.

Yet the Health Minister went on his Christmas holidays and has remained silent. There has been no leadership from the top. It seems he has gone missing on the job.

Michelle O’Neill said that, last February, the Health Minister assured the Assembly that there were still half a million Swine Flu jabs unused.

What has the minister and the department been doing over the past year to ensure that these vaccines were used? It seems that once Swine Flu was out of the headlines any proactive course of action was simply placed on the long finger.

She added that there has been no public advertising campaign similar to the one in late 2009 and early 2010 to warn people of the dangers or to consult with GPs on how to access the vaccine.

We are now seeing the result of this failure with significant extra pressures being put on a number of hospitals and a significant rise in trolley waits.

This is unacceptable and the Health Minister needs to step forward and start giving answers to the many questions that are out there over his management of this situation.