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Health

30th Nov 2019

2019 is “worst-ever” year for patients without beds in Irish health service – INMO

Dave Hanratty

Staggering figures.

The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) has released new figures indicating that 2019 is the worst-ever year on record for overcrowding in the country’s hospitals.

According to the INMO, 108,364 people have been left without a bed in Irish hospitals throughout 2019, exceeding 2018’s total.

The worst-hit hospitals are:

  • University Hospital Limerick (12,810)
  • Cork University Hospital (10,136)
  • University Hospital Galway (7,409)
  • South Tipperary General (6,383)
  • University Hospital Waterford (5,875)
  • Mater Hospital, Dublin (5,572)

INMO trolly crisis

Image via INMO

“It’s not even December, and we’ve today broken the record set in 2018,” noted an INMO statement on Friday, adding that the situation is “shameful”.

“This exceeds 2018’s whole-year total – which was itself the highest year on record,” continued the statement.

“The trolley crisis is not improving. It’s not stabilising. It’s getting worse.”

The INMO’s ‘Trolley Analysis’ breakdown can be viewed in full here.