Unequal access to GP care deepening health inequality in Tipperary, says councillor

Labour Cllr Louise Morgan Walsh has said that people in North Tipperary are being left behind due to poor access to GP services, as new national analysis shows that disadvantaged communities and fast-growing areas are struggling most to get timely GP care.

The analysis mapped Regional Population Profiles with patterns of GP availability and found significant inequalities across the country. Areas with rapid population growth and higher levels of deprivation consistently have fewer GPs per head of population, leading to long waiting times, difficulty registering with a GP, and increased pressure on already overstretched primary care services.

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Speaking in Nenagh, Cllr. Morgan-Walsh said: “GPs are typically the front door of our health service. They are where people turn first when they are sick, worried, or need to be referred for further treatment. When access to a GP is delayed or blocked altogether, everything else in the system slows down and people suffer as a result.

“In communities like ours, families are struggling to get appointments, older people are left waiting too long to be seen, and people who have recently moved into the area are often being told that no GP is taking on new patients. That is simply not acceptable in a modern healthcare system.

“Nationally, the average is now 1,759 people to one GP while North Tipperary is above the national average at 1,829 people per GP. But in some parts of the mid-west region, the situation is far worse. In East Limerick and Ballina, there are over 2,538 people to just one GP and in East Clare, 2,784 people rely on a single GP.

“When people cannot get timely access to a GP, conditions go undiagnosed for longer, treatment is delayed, and health outcomes are worse. That affects a person’s quality of life, their ability to work, and their long-term wellbeing. It also piles even more pressure onto our emergency departments and hospitals, which are already under huge strain.

“We are seeing this locally too. Residents are contacting me every week about the difficulty of getting appointments, the length of time they are waiting, and the anxiety that comes with not being able to access basic care when you need it.

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“These areas have greater health needs and fewer GPs to meet those needs. That is a failure of planning and a failure of political will. We talk endlessly about the importance of primary care, but we are not backing it up with proper resourcing or fair distribution. We are still waiting for the opening of the new Primary Care Centre in Nenagh.

“The Labour Party will introduce legislation requiring the HSE to ensure that GPs are distributed fairly across all parts of the country, and that future GP planning takes proper account of population growth and levels of deprivation.

“We also need to reform the funding model so that areas with higher medical need receive greater support. The level of illness and complexity in a community must be reflected in how resources are allocated.

“As flu season is in full swing, UHL is already struggling with overcrowding. A properly resourced GP system could prevent thousands of unnecessary emergency department presentations. Instead, we continue to firefight every winter because primary care has been neglected for far too long.

“Hoping for the best is no longer good enough. People in North Tipperary deserve the same timely access to GP care as anyone else in this country. Fair access to healthcare should not depend on your postcode. Labour will continue to push for real reform so that every community gets the care it needs.”