The number of patients treated on trolleys at the region’s main hospital fell by almost 20% last month.
The latest analysis from the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation shows September was the worst month on record nationally for hospital overcrowding.
1,994 patients were treated on trolleys at University Hospital Limerick last month, according to the latest INMO figures.
That’s a 19% decrease on the figure recorded in September 2025, when 2,386 patients were treated in inappropriate locations at the Dooradoyle facility.
Despite the annual decrease, UHL remained the most overcrowded hospital in the country, with almost twice as many patients on trolleys as University Hospital Galway, where 1,061 were recorded.
There was a slight increase in overcrowding at Ennis Hospital.
54 patients were treated on trolleys there last month, compared with 36 in September 2025.
Across the country, 12,274 patients were recorded in inappropriate locations during September — the highest figure recorded for the month.
The nurses’ union, the INMO, is calling on the HSE to immediately publish its winter plan for the 2026/27 season, outlining how it intends to radically reduce the number of patients on trolleys.
