A&E inquiry calls for better use of beds

AN inquiry, called after a consultant accused nurses at the Mid-Western Regional Hospital of causing a logjam in the A&E department, recommended better use of beds with more weekend discharges of patients.

A&E consultant Dr Coleman O’Leary blamed nurses for overcrowding last January when there were 36 patients at one time on trolleys. He said the overcrowding crisis arose because INO members refused to move patients from A&E to general wards in a timely manner.

At one point, ambulance crews could not offload patients for admission and had to remain at the hospital until beds or trolleys could be found.