Patient numbers on trolleys hit record

Nurse union leader urges ‘radical action’ to address overcrowding

The HSE has apologised for distress caused to patients left on trolleys in some of the worst overcrowding ever seen in emergency departments, but warned of little improvement in the weeks ahead.

Numbers on trolleys in the country’s acute hospitals hit 563 yesterday, a fraction below the all-time record of 569, bringing warnings from nurses they were dealing with “dangerously high” workloads. The HSE said all hospitals had invoked “escalation plans” which included creating overflow areas for the treatment of patients on trolleys and curtailing non-emergency surgery.