University Hospital Limerick (UHL) has once again reached a new record high of patients waiting on trolleys, with the figure reaching a new high of 138 today, INMO has claimed.
This exceeds the recent high of 132 on the 22nd of January this year.
The figures come from the daily tally known as ‘Trolley Watch’, which is compiled by the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO). According to the data, there were a total of 683 patients at all Irish acute hospitals today without a bed, which is the highest daily figure for 2024 thus far.
Cork University Hospital reportedly has 50 patients waiting for a bed, while St Vincent’s Hospital in Dublin has 44, and Galway University Hospital has 43.
INMO has described the extent of the overcrowding in Irish hospitals as “incredibly dangerous” and the result of “another post-bank holiday trolley surge” nationally.
“The level of overcrowding across hospital sites is incredibly dangerous,” said INMO General Secretary Phil Ní Sheaghdha, adding: “These types of post-bank holiday surges are not new.”
“There is no point in the HSE issuing statements describing how bad the problem is – they should have been taking preventative measures in the week leading up to the bank holiday to ensure that we didn’t find ourselves in the position we are in today.”
Ní Sheaghdha went on to say that the system was “overwhelmed” and that the HSE must prepare accordingly for St. Patrick’s Day and Easter to prevent a similar surge.
“The HSE must outline what steps it is taking to alleviate the pressure in our hospitals over the in the immediate and short-term, and for the St Patrick’s Day and Easter bank holidays, which will happen in quick succession,” she said.
“It is clear that the system is now completely overwhelmed. We need targeted measures to tackle this crisis, particularly in the midwest where overcrowding is completely out of hand.”