Nurses urge action as record number wait on trolleys

INDEPENDENT health watchdogs have been asked to inspect all hospitals for patient mistreatment after it emerged the number of emergency department trolley waits last month was the highest August rate in HSE history.

The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) made the call on the Health Information Quality Authority, An Bord Altranais and the Medical Council after publishing the figures.

Despite the period traditionally being a quieter time for facilities, figures obtained by the INMO show trolley count levels were 70% higher than the August average for the past five years.