Less than third of hospitals in line with HSE targets as almost 500 patients await beds

A further 351 patients who had finished their treatment were waiting to be discharged, according to separate HSE data.

Almost 500 patients were on trolleys waiting for a hospital bed on Tuesday morning, nurses warned, as the impact of rising numbers of flu and covid-19 patients continues in hospitals.

A further 351 patients who had finished their treatment were waiting to be discharged, according to separate HSE data.

The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) counted 485 patients on trolleys, including 85 at University Hospital Limerick (UHL). The data shows challenges also remain at Cork University Hospital where 69 people were waiting for a bed.

Overall, national numbers remain high despite significant efforts over recent weeks to disperse care out into the community where possible and boost other services. However, it is a notable improvement compared to the first Tuesday of January 2023 when 931 people were waiting on trolleys. 

HSE figures show 320 without a bed on Tuesday. While this is a lower figure, it is still above HSE targets. Only 10 of the 29 acute hospitals are in line with HSE targets at present.

The HSE and INMO differ on what ‘without a bed’ means with the HSE not counting patients whose trolleys have been moved out of emergency departments to certain designated areas.

The HSE data also shows 351 patients who have finished their treatment but cannot be discharged for a variety of reasons. This could include no access to homecare or a nursing home bed if they need further support.

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CEO Bernard Gloster has committed to further reducing this number, saying there are clear links between those delays and bed shortages. Emergency medicine consultants with the Irish Association of Emergency Medicine previously called for urgent action on these issues. 

A French study showing “for every 21 older patients kept overnight in an emergency department awaiting a ward bed, there is one extra death at 30 days” was highlighted by Dr Conor Deasy, consultant at CUH. 

“We see first hand the negative impact that crowded, noisy, brightly lit Emergency Departments have on sick patients, in particular, on older adults,” he warned before Christmas. “We see these patients deteriorate before our eyes.