Hospital at odds with Donnelly over ‘new beds’ claim
UHL revelation comes after overcrowding forces elective surgeries to be cancelled for three days
UNIVERSITY of Limerick Hospitals Group has admitted there are 35 fewer new beds in its wards than Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly has claimed.
The embarrassing admission was made just days after the group – which manages six hospitals in the Midwest – had to cancel elective surgery for three days due to overcrowding at its sole 24hour emergency department.
At its worst last week, figures compiled by the INMO (Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation) showed there were 143 people waiting on trolleys and on hospital wards for a bed at University Hospital Limerick (UHL).
But, according to Health Minister Stephen Donnelly, there are 150 extra beds available. However, when the Irish Mail on Sunday asked UL Hospitals Group for a detailed breakdown about where these beds were located, it emerged that instead of 150 extra beds only 115 have been provided during the past four years.
A group spokesman explained: ‘New in-patient bed capacity delivered at UL Hospitals Group since 2020 has included the following projects. All of these beds are in single ensuite rooms and all are open. University Hospital Limerick has a 60-bed block, University Hospital Limerick has a 24-bed block, University Hospital Limerick has a 14-bed block, Croom Orthopaedic Hospital has seven additional in-patient beds.
‘An additional 10 critical care beds have also been opened at University Hospital Limerick since 2020.’
However, Minister Donnelly recently claimed in a response to a parliamentary question raised by Sinn Féin Health spokesman David Cullinane that 150 extra beds have been opened in the MidWest region.
It comes as it emerged up to 19 ‘major’ and ‘extreme’ incidents were recorded at the Midwest hospital group’s main hospital, UHL, during the past five years.
These terms are used to describe both clinical and non-clinical events. But significantly all of these serious incidents occurred in the Limerick hospital’s emergency department.
The MoS understands hospital officials have yet to share the findings of a preliminary review into the death of a teenager there at the end of January, nor have they contacted her family.
Niamh McNally, 16, from Bruff, Co. Limerick, died at UHL on January 29 last, after she was rushed there by ambulance. She was an only child.
The popular teenager was suffering from shortness of breath and she became the second teen to die at UHL within 13 months.
On the day she was rushed to
UHL, there were 113 patients waiting on trolleys.
A source familiar with what unfolded told the MoS: ‘Her mother and a doctor could both see that Niamh was deteriorating rapidly and the doctor said he would bring her into the resuscitation area.
‘At this stage she was vomiting blood and was gasping for breath. Her mother was holding Niamh up on a trolley that was in a hospital corridor.
‘She was holding Niamh up because the staff were so busy there was no one around to help.
‘Niamh’s mother was watching her child choking… then a doctor came to help and he grabbed an oxygen bag.
‘Niamh’s mother tried to help out by helping to give her child oxygen.’
It has not been decided if there will be an internal review of the care given to the teenager.
In December 2022, 16-year-old Aoife Johnston from Shannon, Co.
Clare, also died at UHL after waiting 12 hours to be treated for sepsis. She had contracted meningitis and former Chief Justice Frank Clarke is now carrying out an independent probe into why the teenager died.
UHL has consistently the worst emergency department waiting times in the country, according to figures compiled by the Irish Nurses and Midwives Association. And last week there were so many patients waiting to be treated that all elective surgery was cancelled for three days at UHL and its five sister hospitals – University Maternity Hospital Limerick, Croom Orthopaedic, St John’s, Ennis and Nenagh general hospitals.
On Monday, the 143 patients waiting on trolleys and on hospital wards for a bed was almost three times the number of the next most crowded hospital – Cork University – where there were 48 people waiting.
On the following day, there were 115 patients waiting for a bed in Limerick. This was almost double the number in the second most over-crowded hospital that day which was University College Hospital Galway where there were 55 patients waiting.
Meanwhile, last Wednesday the situation improved and there were 99 patients waiting on trolleys and on wards at UHL, whereas there were 52 in the next most overcrowded hospital – which was University College Hospital Galway.
‘She was vomiting blood and gasping’