THERE were 324 people left on trolleys in the Mid-Western Regional Hospital in Dooradoyle over a 17 day period last month – and those were just weekdays.
The trolley watch figures – which record how many people are on trolleys in the country’s hospitals on a daily basis,
– showed that on one day, October 4, there were 35 people who could not get beds in the Midwest Regional.
On 15 of the 17 days recorded, numbers left waiting for a bed went into double figures.
The figures are compiled by the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO), and are only recorded on weekdays, although the union is planning to start recording weekend figures shortly to show the full extent of the problem.
INMO industrial relations officer, Mary Fogarty, told the Limerick Post that the figures show some of the difficulties which the union has been trying to highlight through recent half-days of stoppages.
And the problems will only get worse as the winter brings its own casualties, as respiratory infections and injuries from falls multiply, she warned.
“We know what’s coming. There are 25 beds closed in the Mid-West Regional Hospital and 25 more in St John’s. Unless the recruitment ban is lifted, those beds are likely to remain closed,” she warned.
The situation at the emergency department of the hospital has been the subject of protest stoppages and talks under the auspices of the Labour Relations Commission.
The INMO and SIPTU suspended all industrial action two weeks ago to allow the HSE examine what can be done. Unions are due to be briefed this week on what progress is being made.
“There are lots of day procedures that could go to Ennis and to Nenagh to free up beds. We have suggested that, as has the minister’s special delivery unit. But we think the HSE and the Department are bracing themselves for what they said would not happen, namely that the numbers of people on trolleys in the Regional last year would be exceeded,” Ms Fogarty added.
In a statement on the numbers, HSE Mid West area, manager, Bernard Gloster, said that adding up the activity in any part of a busy hospital over that period would result in a large figure.
“A more appropriate refelection of the figures would be to take Wednesday, one of our busiest days, this week. At 8 am, we had 25 patients waiting to go to wards in the ED. At 2 pm, we had 13, of which six were waiting under six hours, six were between 12 and 24 hours and one over 24 hours. These are not desirable levels by any means but they are a more fair reflection than simply taking 17 days in a month on aggregate,” he said.
Mr Gloster concluded that members of the public can help by not making the emergency department the first port of call when consulting a GP may be enough.
