IAEM and INMO jointly call for Government action on Covid

The Irish Association for Emergency Medicine (IAEM) and the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation have jointly called for Government assistance to curb the spread of Covid-19.

According to the IAEM higher rates of infection are “causing high rates of hospital admission”. “Hospitals are overwhelmed and staff need real assistance.”

“The situation in Irish hospitals at present is the worst that many of my colleagues and I have seen in our careers,” said IAEM President, Mr Fergal Hickey.

“The situation at present is intolerable for all who work in our hospitals. Our hospitals have been hanging together by a thread of goodwill of staff but that is about to snap.

“The problem of overcrowding at this level is not a new phenomenon in our hospitals. Medical professionals have been sounding the alarm for a long time now. Immediate stronger public health measures are needed – not doing so and abandoning the hospitals to the inevitable will lead to preventable unnecessary higher levels of illness requiring hospital admission and, sadly, for some a fatal outcome.

“Hospitals are currently not safe for patients or for staff because of the level of overcrowding and Covid infection levels.”