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Tag Archives: trolleys

Record overcrowding at University Hospital Limerick

CLARE patients are facing inordinate waiting times for public hospital treatment as 97 patients are without a bed in University Hospital Limerick on Tuesday, the highest number recorded in any Irish hospital since records began. The INMO has once again called on the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) to investigate the overcrowding issue at the hospital. Mary Fogarty, INMO Assistant Director of Industrial Relations said the current trolley numbers in University Hospital Limerick are extremely concerning. “Time and time again, University Hospital Limerick is the most overcrowded hospital in Ireland. “Despite major investment in capacity at the hospital, it is making no dent in the consistent overcrowding problem in the hospital. Overcrowding adds stress for staff and worsens patient care. It is high-risk in normal times, but even more so during a pandemic.” “The INMO is once again calling on HIQA to urgently investigate the overcrowding issue in the hospital and make recommendations. “The patients and nurses at University …

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92 patients on trolleys at UHL

A total of 760 admitted patients are going without beds in Ireland’s hospitals this morning, the worst-ever figure since records began. University Hospital Limerick (UHL) has also broken the daily record for an individual hospital, with 92 patients on trolleys. The previous highest figure was 82, also in UHL. The number of patients on trolleys this morning would more than fill the largest hospital in the state, St. James (707 beds) or take more than twice the equivalent of Letterkenny University Hospital (333 beds). The previous worst-ever day was March 12, 2018, when 714 patients went without beds. Meanwhile, visiting has been banned at University Hospital Limerick until further notice as the hospital continues to manage high volumes of patients with influenza. “As flu can be carried in to the hospital, it is necessary with immediate effect to impose these strict visitor restrictions. We apologise for any inconvenience or anxiety the restrictions may cause patients and their loved ones. However, …

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Clinical Directors of UL Hospitals Group issue open letter to the Mid West

THE clinical directors of the UL Hospitals Group have written an open letter to the people of the Mid-West, in which they call for “a great collaborative effort”, to improve services in the region. The standard of service provided to the people of the Mid- West has been under fire in recent weeks, after record-breaking numbers on trolleys were recorded at University Hospital Limerick (UHL). From Monday to Thursday this week, more patients were waiting for a bed at UHL than at any other Irish hospital. The letter states, “In recent years, our main acute hospital, UHL, has experienced serious challenges in providing enough inpatient beds for the acutely-ill patients that have presented to our Emergency Department (ED). These shortages have led to unacceptable numbers of elderly and frail patients waiting for far too long in the ED for a bed in the hospital. “The experience of some of these patients has been very bad. We profoundly regret that this …

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Trolley records broken at University Hospital Limerick

FIANNA Fáil General Election candidate, Councillor Cathal Crowe has pointed out that records were broken at University Hospital Limerick’s Emergency Department last month as it emerged that 1,071 people were left lying on trolleys waiting for admission to a hospital bed. “We have had a 172% increase in the number of people on trolleys in the November ED figures since 2011 when 393 were on trolleys compared to 1071 in 2018. Looking at the national figures, well over 100,000 people have now been left languishing on trolleys in the country’s emergency departments. The people of Clare are being affected by this atrocious overcrowding. Many of the people on trolleys are older, highly vulnerable people who cannot afford to be left waiting in hospital corridors,” Councillor Crowe said. “This is the first time since records began that the number of hospital patients without beds in Ireland has exceeded 100,000. This means that patients all over Ireland are being subjected to waiting …

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University Hospital Limerick.

Chronic overcrowding at UHL

The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) has condemned the gross overcrowding and the compromised ability of nurses to provide acceptable and safe care to all patients within University Hospital Limerick. “There is no doubt that the level of overcrowding today with 66 patients on trolleys and on extra beds on wards is unprecedented and is a serious crisis,” remarked INMO Industrial Relations Officer, Mary Fogarty . “INMO members do not accept that management at the hospital are robustly managing all of the available bed capacity to meet the demands of emergency patients who are deemed to need admission. It is incumbent on the management team as an employer and in governing the hospital to ensure that the hospital is safe for staff and patients and this is not the case. This is increasingly worrying for our members as clinical care of patients is compromised and there are high levels of stress being experienced by nurses daily. In recent weeks …

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