HIQA says the ‘overcrowded’ and ‘understaffed’ emergency department at University Hospital Limerick posed a significant risk to the provision of safe, quality, person-centred care.
It’s just published it report following an inspection of the ED at the region’s main hospital has found that the facility failed to meet 3 of the 4 key compliance standards, and only partially met the fourth.
The quality watchdog was also not assured the hospital had enacted measures to manage overcrowding in its emergency department and that it compromised the dignity and privacy of its patients.
UHL has submitted a compliance plan in response to the findings and HIQA will continue to monitor the situation.
During the inspection, HIQA assessed:
- Compliance with four key standards from the National Standards for Safer
Better Healthcare under the themes of Leadership, governance and
management; Workforce; Safe care and support; and Person-centred care
and support - Contingency measures in place to mitigate the impacts of crowding in the
emergency department. - HIQA found the hospital to be partially compliant with one standard and noncompliant with three standards assessed on the day of inspection.
Findings included:
- Demand for services exceeded the emergency department’s capacity and was
a major contributing factor to overcrowding - Ineffective patient flow and decreased inpatient bed capacity significantly
contributed to overcrowding - Nurse staffing levels were insufficient, which was having an impact on the
safe provision of care at the time of inspection. In addition, inadequate nurse
staffing levels had been a regular problem over the preceding weeks - The overcrowded and understaffed emergency department posed a significant
risk to the provision of safe, quality, person-centred care and to the health
and welfare of people receiving care in the department - The dignity, privacy and confidentiality of patients attending and receiving care in the emergency department was compromised.
HIQA was not assured that the hospital:
- Had enacted measures to sufficiently manage overcrowding in the emergency
department and the related patient safety risks posed by overcrowding - Had adequate measures in place to address the issues of ineffective patient
flow, insufficient nurse staffing levels and prolonged waiting times, all of
which contributed to the overcrowding of the emergency department.
Following the inspection, HIQA escalated concerns to University Limerick Hospitals
Group and the HSE. HIQA sought assurances that the hospital and wider region
would be effectively supported to enact substantive measures to address capacity
deficits, including in acute and community service configuration, capacity and
resourcing implementation.
The hospital has submitted a compliance plan in response to the inspection findings,
outlining its short, medium and long-term actions to address the non-compliances.
HIQA will continue to monitor issues in the hospital’s emergency department and
implementation of the compliance plan to ensure patient safety risks are reduced.
The report can be viewed in full at this link.
