Long delays and procedures deferred at Portiuncula today

The Emergency Department at Portiuncula University Hospital is extremely busy this morning (Thursday) with significant numbers of patients awaiting admission to the hospital, according to Saolta University Health Care Group.

In a statement, Saolta, which oversees the management of the hospital, said: 'Due to this increased level of activity and subsequent admissions, the hospital regrets that patients are experiencing significant delays in being transferred from the Emergency Department to a bed in the hospital.

'The Full Capacity Protocol has been implemented and all efforts continue to be made to identify patients who are appropriate for discharge. As a consequence, a number of non-urgent elective procedures have been deferred today.

'Management at the hospital would like to advise people who are attending the Emergency Department at Portiuncula University Hospital that they can expect delays. We would like to remind the public that we encourage them to attend the Emergency Department only in the case of real emergencies and they should contact their GP or GP Out-of-Hours service in the first instance.

'Portiuncula University Hospital would like to apologise to all patients and their families for any distress caused as a result of these delays.'