University Hospital Galway is once again one of the most overcrowded in the state today with nearly 50 patients stuck waiting for care.
Galway’s main hospital is consistently among the worst in Ireland for overcrowding, with more than 600 patients left on trolleys in the last month alone.
Altogether there are 525 patients waiting for beds in hospitals across the country today, according to the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation.
UHG is only the third worst-hit this morning with 46 patients stuck on trolleys.
There are 54 patients waiting for a bed at Letterkenny University Hospital and 55 at University Hospital Limerick.
The INMO note that these figures are becoming “business as usual” for the HSE, Ireland’s health service.
They have said that more than 200 nursing jobs are badly needed in the state.
And with winter rapidly approaching, the number of patients without beds is expected to hit record highs.
Protests were held in multiple cities last month over funding, staffing, and overcrowding issues in Irish hospitals.
After a near-unanimous rejection of government pay proposals in late September, it seems that a nurses’ strike could take place later this autumn.
INMO General Secretary Phil Ni Sheaghdha said:
“This is a health service in crisis. Without a plan to improve the situation, public safety is at risk. Nurses and midwives know their patients cannot get timely and appropriate care.
“The HSE must publish a realistic winter plan and commit to ending the near-permanent crisis in Irish hospitals. This should include immediate measures to recruit and retain nurses through a pay rise. Otherwise understaffing will only get worse.”
