Cork hospitals have worst ambulance turnaround times

The HSE's target time is less than 30 minutes. However, that aim was only met in 20.8% of cases last year.

Paramedic ambulance units parked to discharge patients at Mercy University Hospital Accident & Emergency Department. Picture: Larry Cummins

Almost 239,000 ambulances spent over half an hour at a hospital last year, before offloading a patient and getting back on the road.

It represents four out of every five ambulances that arrived at emergency departments.