110% increase in November trolley numbers compared to 2020 - INMO
• University Hospital Limerick (1,358), Letterkenny University Hospital (1,067) and Cork University Hospital (726) are the most overcrowded hospitals in November
The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation has called for the public and private healthcare systems to act as one to tackle hospital overcrowding.
This comes as INMO TrolleyWatch figures for the month of November show 8,317 patients were on trolleys, a 110% increase on November 2020 (3,934). See full figures here.
INMO General Secretary Phil Ní Sheaghdha said:
Despite calls from the HSE Chief Executive for hospitals to cancel elective procedures on November 19th, we have seen relatively high numbers of people on trolleys for the month of November.
Yet again, University Hospital Limerick, Letterkenny University Hospital and Cork University Hospital have the highest number of patients on trolleys. This is a consistent problem in these areas. We need to see bespoke plans from management on how they plan to tackle this problem as we enter the winter months.
We need to see an increase in capacity and utilise the private hospitals. We are now at a stage where we need all of our health services including public and private to be acting as one. The public service is under too much pressure to be expected to shoulder the entire burden of the pandemic. This is the time for private hospitals to step up and be fully involved with this public health emergency. The need to make a profit must be secondary at this time.
With trolley numbers continuing to rise compared to 2020 and new variants entering the country, our nurses and midwives are exhausted before winter even begins. Our members are mentally and physically exhausted. They have been working with no easing of pressure since January 2020. We tend to forget with everything that has happened since COVID first landed on our shores that nurses were dealing with chronic overcrowding in our hospitals with over 20,000 people on trolleys in the first two months of 2020.
There needs to be a recognition from the HSE as the employer that the conditions nurses are currently operating are having an impact on their safety and that of the patient.
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