300 on trolleys overnight despite new unit

ALMOST 300 patients were left languishing overnight on trolleys in the corridors of the Emergency Department of University Hospital Galway in the past four weeks despite a multi-million Euro investment in a new unit to tackle overcrowding at the city hospital. And there are fears the Emergency Department may not be able to cope with the expected influx of admissions if, as expected, the Swine Flu pandemic in the city worsens in the coming weeks when students return from their summer holidays.New figures reveal there were 288 patients who had to endure an overnight stay on trolleys at the city hospital over a 24-day period since a new Medical Assessment Unit (MAU) was opened at the end of June.The Irish Nurses Organisation (INO) 'Trolley Watch’ figures show as many as 39 patients in one night had to wait overnight in the Emergency Department before they were admitted to the hospital for treatment. The HSE West said the new €1.9 million MAU would facilitate the 'fast-tracking’ of patients with acute conditions. The unit was supposed to relieve the overcrowded A&E Department by facilitating the examination and treatment of medical emergency patients who present at the hospital by allowing patients to go directly to the MAU and by-pass A&E.It was...