The busy bank holiday weekend added further pressure on nursing staff already dealing with a severe hospital overcrowding crisis
107 patients are being treated on trolleys today at Cork's three emergency hospitals with 82 of those patients at Cork University Hospital
Ahead of the long weekend hospitals were asked to use private nursing home beds where possible to make beds available for emergency patients
Speaking to RedFM News Colm Porter of the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation in Cork says their members are doing all they can but they need more staff on the frontline
"Our members are seeing their colleagues who are retiring or leaving for other reasons, not been replaced and these are nurses and midwives that are in key patient facing positions. The HSE need to stop treating this as an accounting exercise and recognise the impact that it's having on patient safety and patient care"
