UHL sees it's busiest week of emergency patients since the start of the year

University Hospital Limerick (UHL) is appealing to the public to consider other care options before going to the emergency department.

They say their services are currently in extremely high demand.

"We have been caring for an exceptionally high number of unwell medical patients in the hospital, and the Emergency Department has seen its highest week of emergency presentations since the beginning of the year (1,716 to 8am this morning, a daily average of 245 patients)," a spokesperson said.

UHL is currently at its highest state of escalation, surge capacity has been opened at UHL and across our hospitals.

Scheduled activity across all sites has been deferred for tomorrow (Tuesday) and will remain under review, with only urgent and time-critical patients, including cancer patients, going ahead.

The Emergency Department remains open 24/7, and urgent care is being delivered to those who need it most.

Anyone who comes to ED, who does not have a life-threatening or severe illness or injury will face a significant wait.

"We apologise to anyone who has had a long wait for admission to University Hospital Limerick in recent days and to all who have been impacted by deferrals of surgery.

We encourage the public across Limerick, Clare and north Tipperary to make use of all available alternatives to ED, including local pharmacies for minor ailments; family doctors and out-of-hours GP services; and the Injury Units at Ennis, Nenagh and St John’s Hospitals.

It is encouraging to see the increased demand for Injury Units and Medical Assessment Units in our Model Two hospitals, as more patients choose alternatives to ED.

We thank the public for their patience at this time of exceptionally high demand for hospital services and ask them to continue supporting us in ensuring emergency care is prioritised for the sickest, most seriously injured and frailest patients, said the spokesperson.