The first full week of 2020 was the worst ever for hospital overcrowding with over 3,000 waiting for a bed since Monday, according to figures from the INMO.
Since Monday, 3,143 patients went without beds this week with 760 patients on both Monday and Tuesday - the highest ever numbers on a single day.
Today, 482 patients are waiting on trolleys at hospitals across the country.
“This has been an incredibly difficult week for our members in emergency departments and on understaffed, overcrowded wards. Patient care has been repeatedly put at risk. It cannot be repeated," said INMO General Secretary, Phil Ní Sheaghdha.
“We need to draw a line in the sand and ensure that we make consistent progress in reducing overcrowding.
The worse affected hospitals around the country this week were:
- University Hospital Limerick: 322
- University Hospital Galway: 212
- Cork University Hospital: 210
- South Tipperary General Hospital: 210
The previous worst week for overcrowding since the INMO started Trolley Watch in 2004 was in March 2018 during the 'Beast from the East' storms, with 3,112 patients without trolleys.
