Over 8,000 left on hospital trolleys in April

More than 8,000 patients spent time on trolleys in hospitals last month, the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation said.

INMO general secretary Liam Doran said the figures confirm a record level of overcrowding in the first four months of 2016 compared to previous years, and was a problem that required resources, even if it meant not reducing taxes.

The 8,145 patients on trolleys in April brings the running count to 35,756 since the start of the year, the highest since the INMO’s records began and a 2% increase on the same period in 2015.