There are 669 people waiting on beds on trolleys in Irish hospitals - a record-breaking number.
The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) keep track of the daily statistics as part of their Trolley Watch series, and on Tuesday morning they released the grim stats.
Of those 669 people waiting, 28 are children.
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The top 5 most overcrowded hospitals today include:
- University Hospital Limerick 80
- Cork University Hospital 72
- Letterkenny University Hospital and St James’s Hospital both 51
- University Hospital Galway 45
- Sligo University Hospital 35
INMO General Secretary, Phil Ní Sheaghdha said: "It is extremely concerning but not surprising that we have 669 patients on trolleys today. We have seen a 27% increase of patients on trolleys in the last week.
"A range of measures must be taken now in the short to medium term including the curtailment of all non-emergency, elective care. Capacity from the private sector must be provided immediately. There needs to be a laser focus on the recruitment and retention of nurses and midwives.
"Hospitals must issue public statements encouraging people to consider alternative care pathways in the community and outline clearly what the real time waits are to be admitted to hospital are.
"We are now calling on the Health Service Executive, Minister for Health and the Health and Safety Authority to take immediate action in the worst hit spots. The specialist teams for Cork University Hospital and University Hospital Galway must be deployed today.
"The health and safety of our members and the patients they are trying their best to care for must take priority. We know that they are currently operating in truly unsafe care environments.
"The fact of the matter is the HSE and Department of Health must do everything in their power to ensure that our hospitals are adequately staffed and that each hospital has the ability to retain staff who are currently overwhelmed by their workload. We cannot afford to have unacceptably high nursing staffing vacancies coupled with an overcrowding crisis.
"If Government and HSE are serious about keeping Irish nurses in Irish hospitals then they must take immediate action on safe staffing, fast tracking recruitment and getting private hospitals on the pitch now."
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