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Thursday, 9 Jun 2022 18:50
The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation has called for a meeting of the Emergency Department Task Force to be convened, to discuss current overcrowding and waiting times for patients.
It comes after the Mater Hospital in Dublin asked the public to avoid its emergency department where possible.
It said hospital services are under extreme pressure due to a high number of patients at the ED.
Patients presenting at its emergency department with non-urgent conditions are "unfortunately experiencing lengthy waiting times to be seen."
There are 42 patients at the Mater waiting admission to a bed, according to the INMO.
In a letter to the Minister for Health today, the union's General Secretary said that the hospital figures and wait times are far too high for this time of year.
Phil NÃ Sheaghdha said that the last ED Task Force meeting was on 28 March last.
The INMO is calling for another meeting to be convened and has asked the Minister for Health to attend.
Speaking to RTÉ's Drivetime, Ms Ni Sheaghdha said: "We need the taskforce to be convened in order to look at what's causing this, why are our admission rates so high and what are we doing about it.
"And we believe this has to be led at the most senior level in the HSE and also that the Minister for Health needs to be in the room when this discussion is happening and a seriousness and a direction has to be brought to the problem of overcrowding that hasn't been there for some time."
In a similar letter to the HSE, the INMO said that the actions agreed at the last meeting of the task force have not been completed.
The Mater Hospital is advising patients with non-emergency conditions to seek assistance from other parts of the health service such as minor injury units or their GP where possible.
It said that any patient who is in need of emergency hospital care will be seen at the Mater and it has urged these patients not to delay and to seek such care.
The hospital has apologised for any inconvenience caused to the public.
Ms NÃ Sheaghdha said that the Mater Hospital is "not alone" and there are other hospitals around the hospital forced to make similar statements regarding overcrowding.
She added that it is very serious when a situation like this arises in the summer months, when overcrowding figures are typically lower.
The INMO figures on emergency department overcrowding put the number of patients waiting admission to a bed in hospitals around the country at 481.
The worst affected is University Hospital Limerick with 78 admitted patients waiting admission to a bed; with 45 at University Hospital Galway and 36 at Cork University Hospital.