FULL CAPACITY PROTOCOL STILL IN PLACE AT UHG

Date Published: 18-Nov-2011

Full capacity protocol is still in place at University Hospital Galway this morning as 38 patients are waiting on trolleys.

It's almost a full week since the action was taken as staff struggle to cope with the number of patients attending the emergency department.

This morning's trolley watch figures show 21 patients are waiting at A & E, 11 are at the medical assessment unit, and 6 patients have been dispersed to wards around the hospital.

Yesterday, there was a record high of 60 patients on trolleys at the city hospital waiting for an in-patient bed.

This is despite the fact that 108 beds are closed in the system and nursing numbers are down by over 200 since 2009.