by Kate Heaney
LETTERKENNY University Hospital had the second highest number of patients on trolleys in the country on Monday evening, second only to University Hospital Limerick (UHL).
There were 57 people awaiting beds with 21 in the Emergency Department and 36 elsewhere in the hospital.
The number in LUH on Monday was 109 and the total number countrywide on trolleys was 747.
At one point in recent days there were eight ambulances queued outside LUH unable to discharge the patients in their care.
Numbers reduced fractionally over Tuesday and Wednesday but remained high at 47 on Tuesday and 38 on Wednesday.
Nationally the numbers for these two nights were 702 and 670 respectively.
The chronic overcrowding and ensuing delays for ambulances seeking to hand over patients at the hospital has led Sinn Féin TD Pearse Doherty yesterday to demand a debate in the Dáil before the house rises for Christmas to address the crisis in hospitals across the state and particularly at Letterkenny University Hospital.
“We have elderly patients in LUH unable to get a bed, forced to wait for 36 hours in a hard chair without a second of sleep during that period.
We have staff and patients suffering as a result of overcrowding in hospitals.
“All the while, the CEO of the HSE, the most senior civil servant in the department of health and even the fiscal council have warned that our health service is underfunded for next year.
“This is all happening under your watch. It is absolutely disgraceful. The health service is at crisis point,” he said requesting a debate on the issue.
Meanwhile the HSE has issued a statement in response to a request from the Donegal News for an interview with senior management in the Saolta group stating “we continue to request that people consider other options for non-emergency care such as Out of Hours GP and pharmacies before attending an Emergency Department.
Keeping up to date with your vaccines is the most important thing you can do to avoid serious illness from flu and COVID-19.”
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