Trolley watch: 679 patients waiting for beds in Irish hospitals

Michael Bolton

679 admitted patients are waiting for beds this morning, according to today’s Irish Nurses and Midvives Organisation (INMO) Trolley Watch.

520 patients are waiting in the emergency department, while 159 are in wards elsewhere in the hospital.

Of the 679 people waiting for beds in Irish hospitals, the highest number of patients can be found in University Hospital Limerick, with 97 patients currently waiting for a bed.

Of those 97 patients, 49 patients are in the emergency ward, with 48 in other parts of the hospital. In Cork University Hospital 73 patients are waiting for a bed, with 60 patients in the emergency department.

Letterkenny University Hospital currently has 53 patients waiting for a bed, with 25 people in the emergency department.

The INMO Trolley Watch counts the number of patients who have been admitted to acute hospitals, but who are waiting for a free bed.

These patients are often being treated on trolleys in corridors, "but they may also be on chairs, in waiting rooms, or simply wherever there’s space". The INMO started Trolley Watch in 2004.