The record for the highest-ever level of overcrowding at any hospital in the country has been broken once again at University Hospital Limerick.
The latest INMO figures show 85 patients were waiting for a bed at the region’s main hospital this morning, 55 of those on trolleys in the Emergency Department alone.
A further 30 patients have been accommodated in overflow areas of wards.
It’s the sixth time that the national record has been broken at Dooradoyle, with the previous record of 82 set there in October.
The INMO’s Midwest Representative, Mary Fogarty has been speaking with Fiona Cahill on Clare FM’s Main Lunchtime News, and she says real action is needed today to solve the overcrowding crisis.
Separately today, a new Inpatient Experience Survey has found 70 per cent of people in Emergency Departments aren’t admitted to a ward within the HSE’s own six hour target.
In University Hospital Limerick 75% of patients described their overall experience as good or very good, as did 83% of patients in Ennis Hospital.
But overall, any of the survey’s 12,000 participants – which included 1,000 here in the Midwest – felt they weren’t being given enough information about their treatment or discharge.
Statement from the UL Hospitals Group
Escalation measures to manage surge in attendances & admissions at UHL
University Hospital Limerick (UHL) has reduced elective surgical activity and increased ward rounds with a view to identifying patients suitable for transfer/discharge today, Monday November 25th, as part of a range of escalation measures to manage a considerable surge in patient attendances and admissions at the hospital since the weekend.
The latest available data shows that in the 24 hours prior to 8am this morning (Monday), a total of 183 patients had attended the hospital’s Emergency Department (ED). This is significantly above the norm for a Sunday.
We regret that any patient has to wait on a trolley for admission. This is not the level of service we wish to provide but we want to reassure the public that every effort is made to move patients to a bed as soon as possible
The ED at UHL is one of the busiest in the country, and the unusually high volume of patients has prompted hospital management to appeal to the public to use the ED only for emergencies only. All surge capacity identified under the hospital’s escalation plan is currently being used for admitted patients.
Measures being taken to relieve pressure on the ED and as part of our escalation policy include the transfer of suitable patients to other hospitals within our group; the transfer of appropriate patients to community care settings and maximising access to homecare packages and Transition care; working closely with Community Intervention Teams to provide antibiotics and other appropriate care in a patient’s home or care facility and communication with GPs to ensure patients are referred to ED only where appropriate.
Additional ward rounds are taking place at UHL to identify patients for discharge or transfer and elective surgery has been reduced.
The number of admitted patients waiting in the ED as of 2pm on Monday, November 25th was 37.
Additional measures are being put in place in the coming weeks under the Winter Action Plan for the MidWest being jointly implemented by UL Hospitals Group and HSE MidWest Community Healthcare, details of which are below.
Despite these measures, inpatient bed capacity at UHL remains a challenge, and in the longer term, work on the €19.5m 60-bed block is well underway, and these beds are expected to be operational in Q4 2020. In addition, progression of the 96-bed block remains a major priority for UL Hospitals Group management.
We urge the public to keep the ED for emergencies only; a place where priority is given to the seriously injured and ill and those whose lives may be at risk. Anyone else will likely face a very long wait, and should first consider all the care options available to them in them in their own communities, their family doctors, out-of-hours GP services, or ask their local pharmacies for advice.
Local Injury Units (LIUs) at Ennis and Nenagh Hospitals (8am-8pm daily), and St John’s Hospital (8am-6pm, Monday to Friday) are an excellent option for treatment of broken bones, dislocations, sprains, strains, wounds, scalds and minor burns, without the lengthy wait that can be expected in the ED during busy periods.
