Letterkenny and Sligo hospitals among worst for overcrowding in April
Figures released by the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) show that there were 728 patients left awaiting admission at LUH in April 2026 with 903 in SUH
Letterkenny University Hospital was among the most overcrowded in Ireland in April.
Figures released by the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) show that there were 728 patients left awaiting admission at LUH in April 2026.
Sligo University Hospital was fourth on the list for the month with 903 patients left waiting on beds.
University Hospital Limerick (1,954), University Hosptial Galway (1,003), Cork University Hospital (917) were the only three hospitals that ranked worse than LUH and SUH.
April 2026 represented the worst April on record for overcrowding. Nationally, 11,175 patients were waiting on hospital beds around the country in April.
The INMO says that investment is needed in nurse and midwife-led services in acute and community settings.
“There is no reason for us to be breaking records at this time of year, in a mild month, with no particular crisis preventing the smooth functioning of the health service, 11,000 people being treated in corridors is inexcusable,” said INMO general secretary Phil Ni Sheaghdha.
“The long-term degradation of their working environment has a profound effect on our members and we know that this affects their careers and their wellbeing.
“INMO members are about to head into their annual conference, where once again burnout, and the effects of inadequate staffing will be central topics of discussion and debate.
“Members’ work, their energy, mental capacity and enthusiasm for nursing, are all continuously affected by shortfalls in the health system. Stress takes energy and focus away from their personal and professional goals and affects their capacities to advance their practice and their professions.
“It is deeply unjust and a disservice to members and their patients that we are seeing these figures at the beginning of summer, and the fact that nurses continue to go to work and provide the best care they can in these conditions is a testament to their own commitment.”