Ireland's worst ever overcrowding figures have been recorded at University Hospital Limerick (UHL) this morning as 85 patients wait for beds.
The highest figure ever for a single day, it breaks the previous record of 82 at the same hospital last month.
Patients without beds are typically on chairs and trolleys, often in corridors.
Of the 85 waiting for a permanent bed in Limerick, 55 patients are in the emergency department while 30 are in wards elsewhere in the hospital.
A total of 631 patients are waiting for beds across the country, including 22 children, according to figures provided by the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO).
Cork University Hospital is the second worst-hit by overcrowding with 52 patients waiting for beds, followed by Letterkenny University Hospital with 47 people, Tallaght University Hospital with 36 and 33 in University Hospital Galway.
The INMO are calling on senior HSE management to implement a number of measures to alleviate the pressure at UHL.
These include:
Cancellation of non-essential elective work
More home care packages to move patients out of the hospital
Emergency funding for extra agency staff
An immediate end to the recruitment ban for nurses and midwives
Extra support for GPs and Public Health Nurses to allow more home/community treatment
INMO Assistant Director of Industrial Relations for the region, Mary Fogarty said:“Despite the best efforts of local staff, the situation in Limerick continues to escalate. The hospital is breaking records in the worst possible way.
“Promises of future improvement will not suffice. Real action is needed today.
“We simply do not have sufficient capacity. Without an increase in beds and the professionals to staff them, this problem will continue to escalate.
“Our members are on the frontline providing the best care they can – but the situation is intolerable for them and unsafe for patients.”
