Industrial action by nursing staff at the crisis-hit Mullingar Hospital is now a “cast iron certainty” after the hospital became a no-go-zone for patients and visitors after acute overcrowding there at the weekend.
by Ronan Casey
Unions have warned that patients are dying because they cannot get the due care and attention they deserve because staff numbers are so low. Under pressure nurses at the hospital will stage a lunchtime protest on Tuesday, January 27, after which they will ballot for strike action.
This week the HSE warned people to stay away from the hospital, in particular its packed A&E department, unless it was absolutely necessary, after it emerged at the weekend there were more patients left on trollies in hallways than at any other hospital in the country. On Tuesday morning, there were 30 patients on trollies in the hospital, 20 of those in A&E, the others spread across wards. On Monday, there were 33, including many elderly and terminally ill patients.
The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation said the situation at Mullingar is critical and with morale at an all-time low and stressed staff themselves now becoming ill due to the pressures they face on a daily basis, the hospital is “in meltdown”. The Irish Association of Emergency Medicine has warned that patients will die due to red tape and bureaucracy, making it hard to adequately staff the hospital. The HSE says the hospital is operating at full capacity and they have apologised to patients and families for the discomfort. They have also promised additional staff later this year.
