The overcowding crisis continues this lunchtime at hospitals across the Country.
The trolley watch list from the Irish Nurses and Midwives Association show that there are 544 patients on trolleys today.
University Hospital Limerick is once again the most overcrowded with 62 people waiting on a bed.
South Tipperary General Hospital is the second busiest with 45 people on trolleys.
Coincidentally, the Tipperary facility has today issued an appeal for patients to stay away from its Emergency Department as it tries to deal with the severe level of over crowding there.
Management is asking people to only attend in the case of a genuine emergency, advising that, where possible, a GP or Caredoc out of hours service be consulted in the first instance.
Staff and management are working to prioritise the discharge of patients as soon as possible, where appropriate.
Todays figures come amid criticism aimed at the Taoiseach, who’s been accused of ‘trying to pass the buck’ for failings in the health service.
It’s after Leo Varadkar suggested that family doctors should be reviewed if they refer too many patients to hospital.
Fianna Fáil’s Billy Kelleher says with so many patients on long waiting lists for treatment – GPs often have no choice:
