Sinn Fein has called on the public to join protest marches around the country today over the crisis in health care.
The party is holding a day of action, with some 50 events in Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Tralee, Waterford and other towns across the country. They plan to picket Tanaiste and Minister for Health Mary Harney's constituency office in Clondalkin, West Dublin.
Mary Lou McDonald, Sinn Fein MEP for Dublin said access to decent healthcare is one of the biggest issues facing people today. "We have just come through one of the worst winters in recent years for Accident and Emergency units, with up to 490 people per day waiting on trolleys and chairs at its worst."
Ms McDonald said that at the root of the problem was a grossly unequal, two tier, public-private system.
"Those who can afford it can get the best care quickly. Everyone else has to wait, sometimes for years," she said. "We are calling on people not just to complain about the health services but to campaign and to demand the decent, equitable and efficient services that we need."
The protests are part of a wider Sinn Fein campaign begun by the recent launch of its healthcare policy document, Healthcare in an Ireland of Equals. The party plans to distribute thousands of newsletters, leaflets and posters around the country.