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Cork University Hospital and Mercy Hospital are among 13 acute care hospitals across the country that do not have available ICU beds this week as Covid-19 infections and hospital admissions continue to rise.
The second wave of Covid-19 is putting pressure on acute care hospitals across the country as the number of people admitted to the hospital surpassed 230 and the number of available intensive care beds dropped to just 29 this week.
The daily number of cases in Cork has increased tenfold since mid-September, reaching 147 on Monday and 141 on Tuesday this week.
Of 28 acute care hospitals across the country, 13 facilities, including Cork University Hospital, Mercy Hospital and Kerry University Hospital, had no ICU beds available on Tuesday, according to the latest HSE data.
The figures come as € 22 billion for the health service was announced in Tuesday’s budget, as well as plans to increase ICU beds to 321 by the end of 2021.
for disease management purposes to facilitate Covid-19 and not Covid-19 ventilation routes ”.
The HSE confirmed that the surge’s triggering ability “for disease management purposes to facilitate Covid-19 and not Covid-19 ventilation pathways.”
The largest hospitals in the South / South West Group have not activated ICU augmentation capacity. To date, no ICU augmentation has been used at UL Hospitals Group.
The Saolta Group has activated the ICU augmentation capacity at Letterkenny University Hospital to allow the separation of Covid and non-Covid patients.
An HSE spokesperson added that negotiations are underway to secure additional capacity through private hospitals.
However, the lack of beds is compounded by hiring problems, which, according to a prominent intensive care consultant, had stalled the opening of already funded ICU beds.
Dr. Catherine Motherway, former president of the Society for Intensive Care, said CUH was “significantly challenged” in critical care capacity, in particular as it is a regional center for trauma and cardiothoracic care.
“Cork has a particular difficulty with intensive care capacity. Internationally, it is difficult to recruit critical care staff, particularly nursing staff, and Cork has funded capacity that is not open, ”said Dr. Motherway.
Although he welcomed the budget announcements, he said it takes about six months to hire staff and open new beds.
“The additional capacity announced is very welcome; it will take some time to come online,” he said.
To ease the pressure on the healthcare service and nursing homes, Dr. Motherway said, everyone has a role to play in flattening the second wave of Covid-19: “We are all concerned about the increase in Covid cases and the increase in the number of hospitals, but the best thing people can do is flatten the curve as they did in March, April and May.
“The only way to do it is to limit your social contacts, stop socializing and keep your distance from people.”
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