THE number of patients waiting for admission to the emergency department at University Hospital Limerick (UHL) has increased by 2,000 in the first four months of this year in comparison to the same time last year, according to figures compiled by frontline workers.
The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) carried out analyses of its trolley/ward watch figures ahead of its three day Annual Delegate Conference in the INEC, Killarney, at the weekend.
The figures for UHL from January to April 2015 were 2,442 and this increased to 2,642 for the same period this year.
“The figures again confirm record levels of overcrowding in the first four months of this year compared to previous years. While the April figures would confirm that the on-going increase, is slowing, they still confirm a shocking picture of overcrowding on a daily basis, in almost all of our emergency departments,” the INMO said in a statement.
“It must be noted that this level of overcrowding has continued throughout the last 60 days since the General Election. Despite this fact, it would appear that very little focus has been given to the challenges faced by the health service as compared to the solely political priorities that have taken centre stage in recent days.
“These latest figures also confirm, if it were needed, that this problem cannot be solved without a significant increase in our bed capacity, acute and long-term. This additional capacity can only be supplied when we have a political consensus on what is required”, the statement concludes.
