Nurses' body issues overcrowding warning as 21 patients wait on trolleys in Mullingar

Some 21 admitted patients were waiting for beds this morning (Tuesday) at the Midland Regional Hospital in Mullingar.

The figure comes as the Irish Nurses and Midwives' Organisation (INMO) issued a fresh warning about overcrowding nationally, with 777 patients being treated without a bed in hospitals across the country.

In Mullingar, 16 of the admitted patients without beds were in the Emergency Department, while a further five patients were on trolleys elsewhere in the hospital.

INMO general secretary Phil Ní Sheaghdha pointed out that there were around 200 people on trolleys across hospitals in Galway, Letterkenny, Sligo and Mayo today.

"This level of overcrowding is so dangerous, it is hard to see how the employer can stand over conditions in any hospital in the country," Phil Ní Sheaghdha said.

"It is not acceptable that something as ordinary as a bank holiday weekend can result in this level of risk for patients and staff. It demonstrates a total failure in planning and a total disregard for safety.

"On any given day our members are stretched to the limit, caring for too many patients in understaffed wards.

"A surge in numbers cannot be safely dealt with in those circumstances, and it is up to management to ensure staff and patients are not exposed to this total lack of safety."

She added: "This dangerous situation is happening in the context of cessation of recruitment and nurse managers being prevented from filling vacant posts.

"It is absolutely vital, coming into the busiest time of year, that all vacant posts are filled as a matter of urgency and that recruitment and staff planning move to the top of the HSE’s agenda."