'Seven circles of hell': Cork man tells of trolley experience at CUH
Diarmuid O'Flynn described his experience in the emergency department in CUH this week as the "seven circles of hell". Picture Dan Linehan
For the second day in a row, Cork University Hospital (CUH) is the most overcrowded hospital in the country with 45 people waiting on trolleys.
Hospitals are currently experiencing their biggest overcrowding crisis since the pandemic began and the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) has warned the situation cannot be tolerated any longer. On Friday, there were 343 patients being treated on trolleys in hospitals across the country
"It's never good, but it is really bad, during a pandemic and going into the winter months when we traditionally have had excessive overcrowding," said INMO General Secretary Phil Ní Sheaghdha.
The INMO says that overcrowding simply cannot be tolerated any longer.
One man has described his experience in the emergency department in CUH this week as the "seven circles of hell".
Diarmuid O'Flynn had his prostate removed last Friday and was discharged less than 48 hours later.
After experiencing some pain, he was referred by his GP to A&E to be readmitted.
He would wait 24 hours to get a bed.
"I was lucky that I got in after 24 hours because my case was specific to urology and a bed came up in urology. There were people I saw when I was there that were there for days," Mr O'Flynn said.
While he was there, he said he witnessed parents with sick and injured children waiting for hours, exhausted, stressed and trying to comfort their child.
Describing the process, Mr O'Flynn said that he arrived into the first waiting room where he sat on a chair for hours. His name was called and he was triaged and sent back out to the chairs.
"Your name is called again and if you're lucky you are brought through to be given one of these adjustable chair/bed things. You absolutely cannot get comfortable in these beds."
The beds are in what Mr O'Flynn called "glorified phone boxes" where there is no place to put your belongings.
While he was waiting Mr O'Flynn said he had no access to food. The one vending machine in the area only took coins and at the time was not accepting any coins as it was full.
"There's no one available to go around just to check if people are ok. You have to go chasing yourself to try and get a bottle of water."
Due to the current Covid-19 situation, adults attending A&E are not allowed to be accompanied while they wait to minimise the number of people passing through the hospital - although there are exceptions for vulnerable people.
With no one else there to listen out, people are afraid to leave their seats for fear of missing their name being called.
"I called it the seven circles of hell because initially, you go in, you get the ticket and then you wait for your name to be called. There is no board, no indication of where you are in the queue, you have no idea how long you will be waiting.
While Mr O'Flynn described a hellish time during his 24-hour wait, the staff working in CUH received nothing but praise.
"The staff, the people themselves, the nurses and all of them, I do not know how they do it. They are fantastic, they really are. I cannot speak highly enough about them.
"I was there for 24 hours and not for one minute was one of those people in uniform that I saw that was idle. Those people are totally and utterly committed to the job.
"This is what is really, really frustrating about it. The people who are on the frontline are doing their absolute best."
Mr O'Flynn said that patients were met with kindness, warmth and gentle humour by those who treated them.
Now back at home once again and recovering, he takes care to stress how highly he thinks of all the staff in the hospital.
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
