The issue of patients waiting on trolleys at hospitals once again becomes a national topic in Ireland. According to The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO), currently there are 550 admitted patients waiting for beds in hospitals.
436 of them are in the emergency department and 114 are in wards.
“Over 1,000 patients have been on trolleys since the 1st of February. This is not acceptable and demands urgent and decisive action from the HSE and the Minister for Health. “ INMO General Secretary, Phil Ní Sheaghdha said while calling for government t intervention.
“The HSE must take steps to ensure that this chronic overcrowding isn’t allowed to continue into February, March and beyond.” she said.
There were a relaxation to the issue while hospitals introduced strict regulations following Covid surge in the country. But now, as restrictions eased, many more people are coming back to hospitals for various treatments.
“Overcrowding and long waits in emergency departments can lead to negative health outcomes. We know from recently published research by the Emergency Medicine Journal and the Irish Association for Emergency Medicine, that the mortality rates of people who have to wait five hours or more in our emergency departments could be severely impacted.” Phil Ní Sheaghdha added.
“We need to see decisive action from both the HSE and the Minister for Health. We are at a turning point now following COVID restrictions being lifted, we cannot allow chronic overcrowding to become a recurring feature within our heath service once again.”
Additional reporting: Limerick Leader