Hey Kate,
This is just one opinion, and based on my experience with both US and Irish medical systems.
As I'm sure you're all too aware the cost of medical treatment in the US is very high. I think it's highest in the world actually per dollar spent per person. If you have no insurance or bad insurance you're either going to be in debt for a very long time, or have to forgo treatment.
Having said that though the quality of care I and my family have received over the years is quite good. Wait times are short generally (again with decent insurance), and every type of specialty is adequately catered for. My experience is with CA city dwelling, so I'm sure people from rural areas or other states/cities, might experience different.

In Ireland I have found the quality of care to be quite good, and very affordable, but the availability is where the problem lies. You'll often hear cases where people wait many months to get seen by a 'specialist', and this could be to be treated for something that is very necessary to their good health. Even a GP appointment needs plenty of planning.
I did have the unfortunate need of needing emergency treatment for my kid in mid-2014. He broke his arm, and I must say the quality of care was great. He saw a top surgeon within a couple of hours, and after surgery, he has never complained of any issues. Aftercare was well handled too.

Then there's the issue of distance to hospital, and number of beds. Many treatments will require a trip to Dublin for plenty of people living outside of the capital. There's one main children's hospital, and it's there, but that's not to say children can't be seen in other hospitals too.
You'll find pediatric doctors are not common at all. Family doctors, are more the norm. I know that in CA, even some dentists only serve pediatrics, so it's all very specialized (but at a premium).
For maternity needs, there is a relatively new maternity hospital in Cork (CUMH), but my kids were born in the US, so I can't tell you too much about it. I'm not too sure of the maternity services available around the country.

I hope this helps, but like I say it's just one experience. I'm sure there are plenty of horror stories, and unsatisfied patients out there too.

As a hospital "regular" I can confirm some problems such as long waiting lists overcrowding in A&E and the 2 tier system of private v medical card. I can not compare Irish to US health care but I can compare Irish to UK.

The Irish system is good and as Liam has indicated the cost of insurance is reasonable value for money. I am on the medical card scheme so my waiting times are longer than private patients, I do not have access to the same hospitals so a procedure that could have been done "private" within a couple of months in Galway just 30 miles away, became 12 months and 150 miles away in Dublin. As it is this was not a problem but as the investigation was into a heart condition it could have been?

On the flip side I was rushed into hospital a few years ago, my daughter came over from the UK and ended up in the next ward. She had an ectopic which had been missed 4 times in the UK and was found when I sent her down to casualty for some pain killers because she was complaining of lower cramps. There was no bed for her and she waited on a "trolley" (basically a bed that was not on an "active" ward) overnight but was regularly monitored and operated on first thing in the morning. Portiuncula Hospital saved two lives in our family that weekend.

"malpractice" might be a bit strong.. You are looking at a Health service under pressure. It might be political if I suggested Dublin Hospitals were top of the funding ladder but you will find that money doesn't like leaving the capital. Don't believe the regular press especially when an election is in the air, yes there are case's which shouldn't have happened, more that should have been better dealt with but overall these make up only a small proportion of cases which would be about the same world wide.

I would agree that 'malpractice' was a bit strong - I just meant in reference to the maternity failings that occurred.

The cost of healthcare is just absurd here in the US - even with insurance, you are still paying a pretty penny out of pocket. It seems like wait times can differ in Ireland depending on whether you have private medical insurance or not? Even here in the US, waiting in A&E can take anywhere from 2+ hours, depending on the day or time.

In Maine, a lot of patients still have to get transferred down to Boston for more specialty treatments which is about 2 hours from Portland, so that would be about the same in the sense of travel time going to Dublin from Cork, right? In CA, the amount of specialty hospitals is amazing -Scripps, Mount Cedar Sinai, City of Hope, etc.

Based on your responses, Liam and Tony, it seems like healthcare is pretty good yet can always be improved, just like everywhere. Yes, I completely agree not to base assumptions off of the mainstream media because they will always focus on the negative and the rare cases.

Kate
I'm not sure which maternity failings you are referring to. There have been medical cases in the news around abortion issues, but that is not something doctors have much control over due to the laws of the state. Although, I don't doubt there are plenty of cases (maternity and otherwise), that could involve failings.

On the lower side of 2+ hours to get seen in A&E would be a good outcome in Ireland. I took my mom to a hospital in Cork a few months ago, and she waited 9 hours to get seen. I'm sure Tony could attest to knowing of similar situations in his neck of the woods.
The reason my son got seen so soon, was due to his age and the seriousness of the injury.

Also, to clarify what I meant by the quality of care being good, I'm really speaking about the doctors and nurses and their expertise. What you'll find to be seriously lacking in Ireland is high-tech equipment in hospitals. I've seen IV pumps that look like they belong in the 70's, and there are hospitals in Cork that look like something out of a world war 1 movie. As Tony said, the Irish health service is very much under pressure.

Here's to good health 🙂

Liam,

I think I know the abortion cases you are referring to, which I agree that the doctors have very little control over. What I meant with the maternity failings had to do with the deaths of babies where the staff were unable to read/understand the equipment that monitored the babies heartbeats. Here is a link to an article: http://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/the-midland-babies-i-can-t-let-the-feckers-get-away-with-it-1.2205317

It looks like a very isolated incident, but I was just curious.

Agreed! Here is to good health!

Will a pharmacy in Ireland accept a prescription from a U.S Doctor? My wife will be going back to Ireland next month for xmas and I'm curious how much meds (asthma inhaler) cost in Ireland. Do you know any pharmacies that have their prices on their website?

@soju4321 that's an almost 100% no! I've tried that before for contact lenses, and there was no way. Pharmacists are only licensed in their country, and even in the US they are licensed by each state. They won't accept a prescription from outside the state/country.
If it's just for a visit, bring what you need.

Some prescription drug price references:

https://healthwave.ie/
http://www.hse.ie/referenceprice/

note: one is a membership site, so you need to sign up to get their price. The other is what the HSE will reimburse pharmacists. Plain out-of-pocket costs are probably a bit higher.

Thanks Liam for the websites. I've looked into contact lenses last time in Ireland. For the special type and brand I need I found it much cheaper here in the states. It would be one of those few items I would bring 6-12 month supply and reload when visiting the states once we make the move to Ireland.