An Ennis man is alleging he was forced to spend two days in a wheelchair while waiting for care at University Hospital Limerick.
It comes as the UL Hospitals Group says the Dooradoyle facility is managing a ‘sustained trend’ of significantly high numbers, and is prioritising care for patients who need it the most.
UHL is the most overcrowded hospital in the country as of this morning according to the INMO, with 77 patients reported to be waiting for a bed there.
Clare FM Morning Focus listener Paul says he found his recent experience very difficult.
Listen back to the full interview here:
UL Hospitals Group Response
UL Hospitals Group is unable to comment on individual cases, due to our ethical and legal obligations to protect the privacy of all patients who attend our hospitals, and our staff.
We apologise to Mr Gormley and his family, and to any person who has been impacted by long waits in the Emergency Department (ED) at University Hospital Limerick (UHL).
Wait-times such as those experienced by Mr Gormley are not the standard of care we wish to provide for the people of the Midwest.
Over the past 18 months, we have been managing a sustained trend of significantly high numbers of very sick people attending the ED for care. Many of these patients are frail and elderly, with a variety of complex conditions.
In the four-week period leading up to November 4 and 5, there had been a daily average attendance of 221 patients at the ED. By comparison, average daily attendances for 2021 were 210. Growth in demand for emergency care is not unique to the Midwest, but in this region, ED attendances totaled 76,473 in 2021, and this is projected to increase by 4% at the end of this year.
In these circumstances, we must prioritise care for patients who require treatment most urgently, and anyone who is less than acutely unwell will experience long waits.
As part of our escalation plan, additional ward rounds, accelerated discharges, and identification of patients for transfer to Ennis, Nenagh and St John’s hospitals are all underway.
We continue to advise patients who are seriously ill or injured, or worried that their life is in danger, to attend the ED where they will be treated as a priority.
Less acutely unwell patients are asked to first consider our Injury Units, GPs, out-of-hours GP services and pharmacists before attending ED. Opening hours for Ennis and Nenagh Injury Units are 8am -8pm and St John’s Injury Unit 8am-7pm. Full contacts for these units, and details of the services available there, are available at: https://www2.hse.ie/services/injury-units/
In the longer term, we have been approved for additional Non Consultant Hospital Doctors and ED consultants under the Winter Plan. In addition we are also working with the Department of Health to implement in our ED the Safer Staffing Framework for nurse staffing and skill mix, which has already been implemented in 14 wards/services within UHL. Once implemented in the ED, this will increase the number of nursing staff on the floor, with a view to improving patient experience and reducing pressure on our staff.
However, none of these actions are to minimise the inconvenience to patients and their loved ones arising from long waits for admission and treatment. We encourage Mr Gormley, or any patient, to consider making an official complaint in confidence via Your Service Your Say to [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]
