BREAKING: University Hospital Limerick records highest number ever on trolleys
UNIVERSITY Hospital Limerick has today recorded its highest number of patients on trolleys ever.
According to INMO Trolley Watch, there are currently 95 people waiting on trolleys in UHL today, 69 of these are in the Emergency Department while 26 are in other wards.
The previous highest number on trolleys was 92 which was recorded at UHL in January this year.
Limerick Labour Councillor Conor Sheehan said a bespoke plan is urgently needed to deal with overcrowding at UHL and that the winter plan as published is inadequate.
Cllr Sheehan said: “It’s only the second week of November and we have now recorded the highest number of people waiting on trolleys at University Hospital Limerick.
“UHL is consistently the most overcrowded hospital in the country. This is not acceptable and it demands attention from this government.
"What is needed now is a bespoke plan to deal with the severe overcrowding which much include additional staff to protect these patients.
"The situation is now so serious that my fear is that this shameful record will be broken in the coming weeks as Covid, winter flu and RSV continue to spread.
“The winter plan announced by government yesterday will not be enough. There’s great talk of additional beds but there is no point in increasing capacity if we don’t have the healthcare assistants, nurses and doctors to care for the patients in them. Indeed, we need to ensure that this plan is Covid-proofed.
"We know that the capacity will disappear when Covid gets into hospital because beds and wards close.
“Last week with a surge in Covid cases, we had just one ICU bed available at UHL to cover Limerick, Clare and North Tipperary. How is this acceptable? The numbers are only going in one direction and I am gravely concerned that this lack of ICU capacity will lead to poorer outcomes for patients who desperately need care.
“With community transmission of Covid-19 so high at the moment and a slight lag between case numbers and hospitalisation, the situation at UHL will only worsen and the hospital may yet exceed today’s frightening numbers in the weeks ahead.
“Minister Donnelly needs to bring forward a bespoke, tailored plan for University Hospital Limerick that is Covid proofed and includes widening treatment pathways in Nenagh, Ennis and St John’s.
“These figures should not come as a shock to the Minister. Every year at UHL we have a similar situation of frighteningly high trolley numbers caused by years of underfunding.”