TD whose grandfather spent five days on UHL trolley sees 'no sign of easing' in hospital overcrowding

The Midwest Hospital Campaign heard that some patients in UHL were considering travelling to Galway or Cork instead for treatment

Limerick Cllr Conor Sheehan: 'The strain this places on staff, patients, and families is intolerable, and they are crying out for solutions.' Picture: Brendan Gleeson

A TD whose grandfather spent 100 hours on a trolley at University Hospital Limerick (UHL) a year ago has claimed overcrowding “shows no sign of easing” there even now.

This is despite new figures showing flu numbers are dropping around the country with 42% fewer cases last week compared to the week before. There have however now been 122 flu deaths this winter.

On three days this week, more than 100 people were without a bed at UHL, the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation found, dipping to 98 on Friday.

Conor Sheehan, newly elected Labour TD for Limerick City, last January described how Jeremiah “Derry” Mullins, aged 87, spent five days on a trolley. 

He told the Irish Examiner then: “I firmly believe that my granddad deteriorated because the infection got worse, but he also deteriorated because he was out there in those surroundings."

HSE data for UHL this week showed no over-75s waited longer than 24 hours. However, he said the overall situation has reached “breaking point” now.

“The chronic overcrowding in UHL emergency departments shows no sign of easing,” he said. “The strain this places on staff, patients, and families is intolerable, and they are crying out for solutions.” 

Help is needed, he urged, saying staffing and bed capacity gaps need to be addressed in UHL and other under-pressure hospitals.

“For patients in the Midwest, there is no release valve. UHL is overwhelmed, and the government’s failure to provide targeted solutions is unacceptable,” he said.

Mr Sheehan called on Health Minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill to lead on this as a priority.

“The people of Limerick and the wider Midwest cannot wait any longer,” he warned. “This situation cannot continue. Change is needed, and it is needed now.” 

Midwest Hospital Campaign

The Midwest Hospital Campaign said it was contacted by numerous people this week concerned at overcrowding in the emergency department.

Messages came from “people who were at UHL emergency department and getting increasingly desperate at the chaos and the number of people waiting”, a spokeswoman said.

“One person who was in contact informed us they were so desperate that they and others were discussing options as to whether they should travel to Galway or Cork as an alternative,” she added.

Meanwhile some relief is in sight from flu and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). While flu cases remain “at high levels”, fewer people fell ill and fewer flu patients needed to be admitted to hospitals.

Last week two more people died and 268 people were admitted to hospitals. 

Cases of RSV also dropped with 377 cases notified compared to 594 the week before. Once again this was most commonly seen in toddlers aged under one and older people aged over 80.

Only 130 new covid-19 cases were notified, but there were seven outbreaks including in two nursing homes, the Health Protection Surveillance Centre data shows.