Attendances at Mayo emergency department soar to 130 per day

The emergency department at Mayo University Hospital remains under significant pressure, a statement by the centre has revealed.

In recent days the site has seen attendances of 130 each day at the facility.

The hospital is also seeing a significant increase in Covid-19 positive admissions and attendances while also dealing with high volumes of non-Covid patients.

There are 73 patients with Covid-19 being treated in the hospital while three wards are impacted by the outbreaks.

This is having a significant impact on available bed capacity.

As a result patients in the emergency department are experiencing significant delays waiting for a bed to become available on a ward.

There are currently 16 patients on trolleys waiting to be admitted to a bed on a ward.

Every effort is being made to discharge patients who were ready to go home so that beds become available for patients who need to be admitted, at the earliest opportunity.

The hospital is postponing elective procedures due to bed capacity challenges. Urgent, time sensitive cases are being prioritised.

Patients are being contacted directly if their procedure is being postponed.

All outpatient appointments, ambulatory cases and scopes are proceeding.

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 asking the public to contact their GP during normal surgery hours or the Westdoc GP Out-of-Hours service in the first instance if their health problem is not urgent.

For minor injuries, the Injury Unit in Roscommon University Hospital is open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. every day to treat a range of injuries in both adults and children over five years of age.

Due to the number of patients with Covid-19 being treated at Mayo University Hospital, access to visitors remains suspended.

This measure is to enhance patient safety and prevent ward outbreaks.

Visiting will continue to be facilitated on compassionate grounds. To arrange a visit on compassionate grounds, please contact the ward manager in advance as per normal process.

The nominated support person/visitor must complete a COVID-19 screening checklist and follow the public health guidance, including wearing a FFP2 surgical face mask (when requested) or surgical face mask and performing good hand hygiene regularly.

There are separate arrangements in place for access to the maternity department for nominated support partners, in line with national guidance.

The limitation on visiting is being kept under review.

"We regret that we are back in this situation and would like to thank our patients and the public for their understanding and support," the statement concluded.