More than 170 patients on trolleys every day last year

MORE than 170 patients were left lying on trolleys in Irish A&Es every day last year, figures from the Health Service Executive and the Irish Nurses Organisation confirm.

According to HSE figures, the daily trolley average in 2005 was 176 patients.

However, figures compiled by nurses themselves found that an average of 242 patients were on trolleys in hospitals every day last year.

The INO has said the figures are “scandalous” when compared with the outrage in 2001/2002 when trolley figures topped the 100 mark for the first time. Medical unions and opposition parties have said the figures reveal how the A&E crisis is deteriorating year on year.

According to the INO, an average of 141 patients lay on trolleys in Dublin A&Es every day last year, while the HSE figures show a daily Dublin average of 104.

The capital’s A&E figures are consistently higher than the regional figure but the daily average trolley figure outside Dublin last year was still a staggering 101, according to the INO trolley count. The HSE regional daily average was 72.

Throughout the past year, there has been a stark contrast between HSE and INO figures, particularly last December when the HSE figures revealed a Dublin average of 98 and a regional average of 79. The INO average figures showed 158 on trolleys in Dublin and 119 outside the capital.

The HSE and INO figures show there was no sustained reduction in trolley figures over the year as the low HSE figures for December can be attributed to a reduction in planned surgery before and during the holiday period, according to hospital staff.

Medical staff say trolley figures also dropped slightly in June, July and August due to warmer weather, seasonal closure of wards and increased uptake of annual leave by staff and patients.

Opposition politicians and medical unions say the figures put question marks over the HSE’s claim that A&E figures in Dublin fell 20% last year - a figure obtained by comparing the busiest and quietest months, April and December.

When Tánaiste Mary Harney took over the Health portfolio over a year ago she drew up a €70 million 10-point plan to alleviate the A&E crisis.

The Labour Party said: “The reality is that the Tánaiste’s A&E plan is in tatters.” Labour health spokeswoman Liz McManus said trolley figures will only fall when the number of acute and community beds is increased.

A spokesman for the HSE said yesterday that it was standing over their announcement earlier this month that the average number on trolleys in Dublin dropped by 20% between April and December last year. He said figures had fallen nationally by 14%.

The spokesman attributed the drop to the effects of the Tánaiste’s A&E plans.