Nearly 3,500 more people were treated on trolleys at University Hospital Limerick last year than in 2022.
Nationally 122,879 people were without hospital beds in 2023, according to new figures from Irish Nurses’ and Midwives’ Organisation.
UHL – which covers North Tipperary – was the worst hit with 21,455 patients having to be treated on trolleys or chairs last year due to a lack of beds.
This compared with just over 18,000 in 2022 and 5,500 in 2013.
2,877 people who were admitted to Tipperary University Hospital in Clonmel were left without a bed – an increase of 600 on 2022.
393 patients with treated on trolleys at Nenagh Hospital last year – up from 137 the previous year.
The INMO says staffing and resources are just not adequate to meet the growing demand for hospital services.
General Secretary Phil Ni Sheaghdha, says the recruitment freeze on medical personnel is only making a bad situation worse.
“Telling them that the shop is closed is extremely worrying for us because we know that in order to expand the health service to the level that we need it to expand we need to ensure that we can attract as many of these professionals back and also those that are working in the system – we need to ensure that they are working with levels of staffing that are safe.”
