Ireland's healthcare system has been buckling under pressure for too long.

There has been uproar in Ireland following the passing of 10-year-old Vivienne Murphy. Vivienne passed away after contracting Strep A in 2019, but her parents have recently spoken out about her untimely death in a bid to raise awareness about Strep A, as well as Ireland's failing healthcare system. The public was shocked to discover that Vivienne was seen by three GPs who failed to see how ill she was. Following her parent's interview on RTÉ's This Week, the public spoke out against Ireland's healthcare system and how it let Vivienne Murphy down. "Listening to the parents of poor Vivienne Murphy on the radio and I can't believe THREE GPs didn't realise how ill the child was when she was unable to produce a urine sample," one wrote. https://twitter.com/CunninghamLaura/status/1647722698028601346 Another added, "It was heartbreaking and shocking that no doctor took her parents seriously when they knew their child was seriously ill. Were they afraid to go against another doc's diagnosis? Worse again the lack of paeds ICU is still ongoing." https://twitter.com/Luighseach/status/1642786958031167488

More ICU beds are needed for children in Ireland.

Sinn Féin's David Culline told The Journal that critical care services for children are "highly constrained". Culline said Vivienne's tragic passing should "cause us to reflect". He told the publication, "There were only three free intensive care beds for children yesterday. This shows the urgent need to develop more capacity." Sinn Féin has also called for an investigation into the lack of ICU beds for children in this country.

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