INMO says HSE's new trolley target measures will not be effective 

INMO general secretary Phil Ní Sheaghdha said for every patient who is on a trolley for longer than six hours, their outcome is significantly negatively affected.

The general secretary of the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO), Phil Ní Sheaghdha has said measures being introduced by the HSE to tackle high trolley numbers will not be effective.

The new emergency department targets, set out in the HSE's Urgent and Emergency Care Operational Plan, are that the average monthly trolley count in hospitals will not exceed 320 patients waiting for admission at 8am each morning and that no patient aged over 75 will wait more than 24 hours in an emergency department.

Ms Ní Sheaghdha said for every patient who is on a trolley for longer than six hours, their outcome is significantly negatively affected. 

“The target should be to make sure that patients are not waiting for any longer than six hours on a trolley. That should be the target," she told RTÉ.

The continued high trolley numbers clearly indicated the problem was with the management of hospital overcrowding, she said. 

It is looking at a number and trying to massage and change the number and make it look a bit better, but actually not lifting the bonnet and changing what's causing the problem.” 

The issue is that more hospital beds, along with long-term beds are needed as well as stronger primary care services to keep people out of hospital, she said. 

HSE plans for more hospital beds are meaningless unless there is an improved recruitment and retention campaign because every hospital bed requires nursing and healthcare assistance staff, she added.