599 patients on trolleys across Ireland on any day in June, says INMO
Kenneth Fox
There are a total of 599 patients on trolleys on any given day in June, which is a symptom of insufficient bed capacity coupled with an unnecessary recruitment embargo on nursing staff, according to the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO).
Speaking about the issue, INMO general secretary Phil Ní Sheaghdha said: “The level of overcrowding we have seen over the last six weeks in particular has a cause of concern for nurses and midwives.
"We are now seeing a dangerous amount of patients on trolleys on wards across our hospitals, with 182 patients on trolleys outside of emergency departments today alone.
“In the INMO’s pre-budget submission last year we called for an additional 2,500 beds to be provided by the end of 2024. This must now be an operational and political priority matched by the ending of the recruitment moratorium and intensive recruitment.”
There are 599 people waiting for beds across Ireland this morning.
University Hospital Limerick has a total of 118 on trolleys, followed by Cork University Hospital and University Hospital Galway with 50 and 49 people waiting for beds respectively.
