Major crowding issues at Cork University Hospital on Monday evening and Tuesday morning dominated proceedings in the Dáil during Leaders' Questions.
Tánaiste Simon Coveney was questioned by Opposition leaders and TDs about the need to issue a 'Status Black' escalation warning at the hospital, with patients attending the emergency department facing extreme delays of up to 12 hours and with services reaching breaking point.
“A status black escalation is declared, I understand, when the hospital is at maximum capacity and when it is deemed unsafe to admit further patients,” Sinn Féin President Mary Lou McDonald said.
“There were 70 patients on trolleys in Cork University Hospital this morning, with 570 patients on trolleys across the State. Yesterday, in Limerick there were more patients on trolleys than in Dublin's nine hospitals combined, according to the INMO. I am sure the Tánaiste will agree that this is shocking,” she said.
There are also reports that during the status black escalation up to eight ambulances were lined up outside the accident and emergency at Cork University Hospital waiting to hand over patients, she said.
I am told that one of those ambulances was forced to wait for more than four hours. That is the sort of situation that puts patient and staff at serious risk and it is unacceptable.
In response, Mr Coveney said the number of patients waiting on trolleys in Cork University Hospital was 55 and on Tuesday morning the Health Service Executive, HSE, trolley system reported 431 patients waiting on trolleys nationally.
This is an increase on the same day last year when there were 296 patients on trolleys, he said.
“The number of patients waiting on trolleys at Cork University Hospital this morning is exceptionally high. The HSE identified specific issues and challenges on the site,” he said.
"The first was a significant capacity demand mismatch, with high rates of attendance and admission and a low rate of discharges."
The hospital remains in a full-capacity protocol, with the highest trolley count this year on the site.
Key actions are now underway in Cork University Hospital to improve the position for patients and these actions include full mobilisation of all resources, escalation meetings with both the group chief executive officer and chief compliance officer and meetings scheduled with consultants, Mr Coveney added.
“The Deputy is right that a serious challenge has arisen in CUH as of last night and again today. We are responding with the seriousness that is needed. We need to and are putting the extra resources and the priority systems in place to respond to that in accordance with the needs of patients there,” Mr Coveney added.
Ms McDonald responded by saying the status black escalation, as the Tánaiste knows, is essentially a declaration that a hospital is no longer safe.
“It was dangerous. I described the scenario for the Tánaiste, with ambulances lined up outside the hospital and one that I know of that waited for more than four hours to hand over a patient.
"This is a very serious accident waiting to happen and it is playing out on this Government's watch,” she said.
