As North Tipperary politicians congratulate themselves, via social media, in relation to the “welcoming” of progress on projects for which they personally have had no hand, act or part in; staff at University Hospital Limerick (UHL) are being totally ignored. Latter medical facility, which serves the residents of North Tipperary, are today treating the highest number of Covid-19 patients (16) and patients with suspected cases of the virus (13) in the Irish Republic.
Not surprisingly, due to this same political abandonment and parliamentary shabbiness, same UHL staff are also left caring for the largest number of seriously ill patients within the Irish State; same resigned to lie for days on trolleys.
Management at UHL were recently, and not for the first time, forced to introduce visiting restrictions in an effort to manage an outbreak of the Covid-19 virus, on a number of wards within the facility.
In the past fortnight, there were some 732 cases of Covid-19 virus in the mid-west region alone, the majority being in Co.Limerick (469 cases), followed by Co. Clare (163 cases), and North Co. Tipperary (100 cases); same numbers confirmed by the Department of Public Health Mid West region.
The availability of general beds at UHL has improved somewhat, from zero beds available (August 8th 2021) to 14 available beds yesterday, according to figures provided by HSE . As at that date, there were 4 ICU beds remaining at the Limerick hospital facility, with 1 Covid patient being treated in intensive care.
Yesterday at UHL, there were 43 patients assigned to trolleys, awaiting for admission to a bed, including 31 in the Limerick emergency department, and 12 on hospital wards; again confirmed figures published by the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO).
Previously on August 3rd there were 55 patients on trolleys in the Limerick hospital’s emergency department and on wards; same the highest number reported in any hospital within the Irish State, so far in the month of August.
Some 98 single beds opened at UHL, just last January 2021, have not yet been used to offset overcrowding at UHL emergency department. The reason for this is mainly because they were being used for seriously-ill patients, all deemed to be at highest-risk of death, should they contract Covid-19 which had already broken out within the overcrowded UHL facility.
The recent recorded surge of patients, which was experienced in UHL last July was due mainly to a wave of older people attending, who had experienced delayed care because of the Covid-19 pandemic, and were acutely ill due to same unavoidable neglect. Same patients, when attending were quite ill, so there was a greater need for longer hospital stop overs.
So Tipperary politicians please, enough of this old fashioned self-congratulatory “welcoming” and “calling for” nonsense, which we are fully aware you have had no hand, act or part in personally; rather address current problems which your electorate elected you to undertake.
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