Nurses say University Hospital Limerick has witnessed the worst year on record for overcrowding.
The latest figures from the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation show there were more than 21,000 patients left waiting for beds at the region’s main hospital so far between January and December.
The latest analysis from the INMO indicates there have been 21,141 patients on trolleys so far this year, marking a 17% increase on the whole of 2022 and a 51% jump on pre-pandemic figures.
University Hospital Limerick has been by far the busiest in the country to date, with 8,654 MORE patients left waiting for beds than the next busiest facility; Cork University Hospital, over the past twelve months.
Today alone, the level of overcrowding at UHL is double that of any other hospital, with 101 patients on trolleys during morning rounds.
Ennis Hospital also saw a spike in figures, with 509 patients on trolleys across the year so far, up from 343 in 2022.
Overall, more than 121,500 admitted patients were left waiting for beds nationwide this year and the INMO says with six days to Christmas, there’s been no let-up in pressure for nurses and midwives working in overcrowded and understaffed hospitals.
The union has criticised the HSE for implementing a recruitment freeze, instead of plans to drastically improve conditions for members and patients in EDs, saying it’s their experience that the impact will take a long time to reverse.
It says long delays, inadequate bed space and unsafe staffing levels are making it impossible for union members to provide safe care.
The INMO has also warned that we’re about to walk into an unbearably busy time in our public hospital system and claims it’s clear that lessons from the not-so-distant past haven’t been learned when it comes to tackling the root causes of hospital overcrowding.
