The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) has described the trolley crisis in Cork as “hugely concerning” as more than one hundred patients were waiting on trolleys across Cork hospitals today for the second consecutive day this week.

According to the INMO’s TrolleyWatch figures, there were 71 patients on trolleys in the emergency department at Cork University Hospital (CUH) on Tuesday morning.

At the Mercy University Hospital (MUH), there were 30 people awaiting a bed at the hospital's ED.

In West Cork, there were three people on trolleys in wards at Bantry General Hospital (BGH) on Tuesday.

INMO Director of Industrial Relations, Albert Murphy, said: “The fact that 1,346 patients have been without a hospital bed in Cork hospitals since the beginning of Cork is hugely concerning.

“The bed deficit that exists in the city and county, coupled with Covid-19, RSV, flu and other illnesses, is putting huge pressure on our members and creating miserable conditions for their patients.

“Our members are trying their best to provide the safest possible care but it is proving impossible when hospitals are so overcrowded.” 

Mr Murphy called for “urgent interventions” from the South/Southwest Hospital Group including the curtailment of non-urgent elective care.

“Additional bed capacity must be sourced in the community and from the private sector in order to alleviate serious pressure in the CUH and the Mercy in particular,” he said.

Meanwhile, MUH hospital management said its ED is experiencing high demand for services due to a marked increase in the attendance of acutely ill patients and a surge in Covid-19, flu and winter vomiting presentations.

The hospital’s ED remains open 24/7 but patients will continue to experience delays and management has appealed to members of the public needing less urgent treatment to avail, where possible, of other care services.

A spokesperson for the South/Southwest Hospital Group said the Group will not be in a position to comment until a later date.