National study: Portiuncula under most pressure due to lack of beds

A national study has revealed that Portiuncula Hospital, Ballinasloe has the most pressurised Emergency Department in the country due to the lack of available beds.

The anaylsis of available beds across the country shows that there was just an average of eight beds in Portiuncula Hospital for every patient on a trolley last month. Patients in Tullamore were 27 times more likely to get a bed than those in Ballinasloe.

Commenting on the figures, local TD Denis Naughten said that smaller hospitals and staff were under most pressure.

“Even University Hospital Limerick with record trolley numbers was under less severe pressure than Portiuncula Hospital, due to the fact that there were nine beds in Limerick for every patient on a trolley,” he said.

“If we delve down into the numbers of patients waiting on trolleys to date in 2023 and analyse this as a percentage of the number of beds