Almost half of the children on hospital trolleys yesterday were waiting more than nine hours for a bed, it has emerged.

Demand for public hospital beds will have increased by a third by 2030, because of a rapidly growing and ageing population.

Nurses claim patients are being admitted to 30 new beds in Virginia Community Nursing Unit in Cavan - despite the fact that no staff have been hired to care for them.

There has been a rise of almost 33% in the number of patients waiting for hospital beds today.

The Irish Medical Organisation is warning new measures to tackle overcrowding in Emergency departments are "unworkable".

The Secretary General of the nurses and midwives union says he has never been as worried heading into a winter period.

The biggest stumbling block to opening 300 extra hospital beds before the end of the year to ease chronic overcrowding will be the ongoing staffing crisis, nurses have warned.