Record numbers at UHL's Emergency Department

University Hospital Limerick (UHL) is currently experiencing extremely high demand and we are appealing to the public to consider all care options before presenting at our Emergency Department.

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 on Monday morning, a daily average of 245 patients).

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 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 doesn’t 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 2 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.