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# Trolley Watch
Worst April on record as 10,000 people forced to wait on hospital trolleys and chairs last month
Some 106 children were among those waiting without a bed.
LAST MONTH OVER 10,000 admitted patients were forced to wait on trolleys and chairs, according to the latest figures released by the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation.
The INMO’s monthly ‘trolley watch’ analysis shows that 10,229 people were treated without hospital beds in April.
Some 106 children were among those waiting without a bed, according to the organisation.
According to the INMO, it’s the highest ever number of patients on trolleys in April, an 8% increase on April last year and a 125% increase on April 2006, when figures began.
The worse hit hospitals were:
- University Hospital Limerick: 1,206 patients
- Cork University Hospital: 826 patients
- University Hospital Galway: 683 patients
- South Tipperary General Hospital: 623 patients
- Tallaght University Hospital: 566 patients
Commenting on April’s figures, INMO General Secretary Phil Ni Sheaghdha has said it is “the second month in 2019 where over 10,000 patients have been forced to wait without a bed.”
“The crisis is without question worsening. Overcrowding hits two main groups directly: those who depend on public health services and those who work in them, providing the safest care they can in these conditions.”
“We started the trolley count over a decade ago because of unacceptable overcrowding. The problem has more than doubled since then.”
The HSE did not respond to queries regarding the above figures by the time of publishing.
