2023 'worst year on record for hospital overcrowding', says INMO

Muireann Duffy

University Hospital Limerick (UHL) continued to be the most overcrowded hospital in the country this year, in what the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) described as the "worst year on record for hospital overcrowding".

According to the group's trolley watch figures, over 121,526 patients have gone without a hospital bed in 2023, the highest portion of which were in UHL (21,141).

The second most overcrowded hospital was Cork University Hospital, where 12,387 patients had to wait for beds during the year, followed by University Hospital Galway (8,914), Sligo University Hospital (8,094) and St Vincent's University Hospital (6,555).

The union added that on Tuesday morning, there were 517 people waiting on trolleys in hospitals around the country.

"With six days to Christmas, there has been no let-up in pressure for our nurses and midwives who are working in overcrowded and understaffed hospitals," INMO general secretary Phil Ní Sheaghdha said.

"For the second year in a row we have broken overcrowding records. The year is not even over and 121,526 patients have been admitted to hospital without a bed.

"Over 3,450 children have been on trolleys so far this year, an increase of 24 per cent on the previous year.

"This is not something to celebrate and was entirely predictable," she added.

Criticising the HSE's recent freeze on recruitment, Ms Ní Sheaghdha said the move will "further demoralise a burned out, exhausted workforce", adding that the impact of the embargo will take a long time to reverse.

Noting a report published by the Health Information and Quality Authority (Hiqa) earlier this week, which found patient dignity was compromised in over 80 per cent of hospitals inspected, Ms Ní Sheaghdha called on the Government and HSE to act to address the issue.

"Long delays, inadequate bed space and unsafe staffing levels are making it impossible for our members to provide safe care.

"We are about to walk into an unbearably busy time in our public hospital system, and it is clear that lessons from the not-so-distant past have not been learned when it comes to tackling the root causes of hospital overcrowding," she warned.