INMO seeks urgent meeting with new HSE CEO over 'out of control' overcrowding at UHL

ELECTIVE procedures at University Hospital Limerick are being curtailed this Wednesday due to the large number of patients who are on trolleys awaiting beds.

The hospital issued an appeal to members of the public yesterday to consider alternative options and figures from the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation show there were 116 patients on trolleys this Wednesday morning.

The figure is the highest for any hospital in the country and the highest at UHL for a number of weeks. Of the patients on trolleys at UHL, 56 are in the Emergency Department while 50 are in wards elsewhere in the hospital.

University Hospital Limerick Emergency Department managing high attendances

Commenting on the latest figures INMO General Secretary Phil Ní Sheaghdha said it's clear that hospital overcrowding is "out of control" once again.

"The level of overcrowding in some of our emergency departments warrants a national response. The INMO has been in contact with the new Chief Executive Officer of the Health Service Executive seeking an urgent meeting in the next 24 hours ahead of what will be an extremely busy bank holiday weekend for our members," she said.

 “It is clear that the system is now completely overwhelmed. We need targeted measures to tackle this crisis, particularly in the Midwest where the overcrowding is completely out of hand," she added.