UP to ten ambulances are backed up at Letterkenny hospital this afternoon.
This photograph shows the extent of the situation which has unfolded in the last few hours.
Councillor Gerry McMonagle said it amounted to around two thirds of Donegal’s full ambulance allocation.
“My concern is has the county now initiated an emergency response and are 999 calls going to be answered in a timely fashion.
“Unfortunately the way things are today people ringing 999 will have to wait,” Councillor McMonagle said of the emerging situation.
In a statement just issued hospital group Saolta said Letterkenny has been experiencing extremely high numbers of patients.
“The emergency department at Letterkenny University Hospital has been extremely busy over the past week with on average 120 patients presenting for treatment every day. Yesterday 139 people attended the emergency department.
“The high number of people attending who need to be admitted for ongoing treatment means that there is pressure on bed availability and this is resulting in significant delays being experienced by patients in the emergency department who are waiting for a bed to become available on a ward. In addition the hospital continues to be impacted by Covid. As of 8pm last night there were 23 patients with Covid being treated in the hospital.
“All available beds are in use including an additional 23 escalation beds. Every effort is being made to discharge patients who are ready to go home so that beds will become available for patients who need to be admitted, at the earliest opportunity.
“The hospital acknowledges that these delays are very difficult for patients and their families and apologises for the inconvenience and distress these delays cause.
“The hospital is committed to treating everyone who presents at the emergency department; people who are seriously injured or ill are assessed and treated as a priority and those who do not require urgent care may be waiting longer. If your health problem is not an emergency you should contact your GP during normal surgery hours or the NoWDOC GP out of hours service, in the first instance.”
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Posted: 5:30 pm March 1, 2022
