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emergency department image via Shutterstock.com
# Overcrowded
HSE: Don't come to Mullingar hospital ED unless absolutely necessary
The hospital said it needs the facilities it has to deal with any emergencies that might arise later this evening.
THE HSE HAS asked the public not to attend the Emergency Department at Midlands Regional Hospital in Mullingar “unless it is absolutely necessary”.
There is currently a high number of patients waiting on trolleys to be admitted. The hospital said it needs the facilities is has available to deal with any emergencies that may present this evening and into the night.
They expressed regret that patients have had to wait for long periods for admission and said the situation is being kept under continuous review.
Last month, Beaumont Hospital was placed ‘off call’ for a number of hours as it struggled to deal with overcrowding at its own Emergency Department.
Minister for Health Leo Varadkar has convened a taskforce of health professionals to try to come up with a plan to combat overcrowding in hospitals. Last month, he told TheJournal.ie that it was a “chronic problem” and only a long-term plan will resolve it.
Read: Leo says he’ll get a plan to sort out ‘chronic’ hospital overcrowding>
Read: Beaumont Hospital only admitting ‘urgent’ emergency cases due to overcrowding>
