Cavan hospital’s Emergency Dept remains under pressure

The situation in Cavan General's Emergency Department remains “unchanged” from last week, with the hospital still experiencing a high number of “presentations and admissions”.

Last Thursday a statement was issued by the HSE saying that it was expected that the pressure the hospital's A&E is under would “continue” for several days at least, with management urging members of the public to use “alternative” healthcare services for treatment such as GP, GP Out of Hours and pharmacies where “appropriate”.

They do add however that if patients are “very sick and in an emergency situation” they should still attend the local Emergency Department.

“Emergency Departments are always available to treat seriously ill patients and the sickest patients are seen first. People with less severe injuries and symptoms may have to wait to be seen,” said the HSE spokesperson.

They added their thanks for the “hard work, commitment and dedication” of all staff.

On Monday last, August 18, Cavan General had 16 people on trolleys and awaiting a bed, according to the INMO.

The HSE assessment was slightly less at 14 patients on ED trolleys, though they admit that 11 people were admitted to beds in a surge capacity - there are beds taken from elsewhere in the hospital to meet ED demand.

The number was slightly down on Sunday, with HSE figures reporting two on trolleys in A&E and 19 more being cared for in a surge capacity; a figure that trended over from Saturday when there were 18 patients being managed in beds elsewhere and not the ED.

On the day that the HSE issued their statement (Thursday, August 14), its own figures showed 16 patients on trolleys, seven in surge capacity, and one person waiting 24 hours to be looked after.

Covid variants

Many hospitals in Ireland are dealing with increased presentations in the XFG and NB.1.8.1 Covid lineages.

XFG accounted for 56.4% of sequences in the last five weeks, while NB.1.8.1 accounted for 20.5% of sequences for the same period.

“Another variant: LP.8.1 is also circulating in Ireland at around 9.8%. Within the last five weeks, the proportion of XFG sequences has been increasing,” say the HSE, which adds that based on risk assessments that there is “no evidence” of an impact on immunity or disease severity with current variants spreading.

“The majority of hospitalised COVID-19 cases were aged over 65 years and largely 80+.”