NI emergency departments under 'extreme pressure'

Image source, Getty Images

Image caption, NI emergency departments are under 'extreme pressure'

The Health and Social Care board has said emergency departments across Northern Ireland were working under extreme pressure on Thursday.

It said increasing numbers of children and older, sicker people attended and requiring to be admitted.

The pressure was leading to "some patients waiting longer than is acceptable, particularly to be admitted".

Healthcare workers went on strike in December over pay and staffing issues.

It was the first time in history the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) voted to go on strike, with members of the largest health union in Northern Ireland - Unison - following suit days later.

Ian Crawford, vice president (Northern Ireland) of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine, said 300 patients had spent more than 12 hours in emergency departments on Wednesday and Thusday.

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On Thursday, the Western Trust tweeted saying the South West Acute Hospital in Enniskillen, County Fermanagh, was "very busy".

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Ray Rafferty, chairman of Unison's Royal Victoria Hospital branch, said there was an "immense amount of pressure on the system".

"It has come early and it has come far harder than we anticipated, to the point where all hospital beds in Belfast are full," he said.

"I have seen many crises in the past and this is about as bad as I have ever seen. There isn't any end in sight".

Image caption, Ray Rafferty said there is "no end in sight"

In a statement, a spokesperson for the Health and Social Care board paid tribute to staff "who are working tirelessly to ensure patients receive the care that they need".

The statement called on the public to assist in "using services appropriately".

"Our clear message is if you are seriously ill or injured, then the emergency department is the place to go," it said.

It added: "The sickest patients will be prioritised first. If you are not assessed as urgent you may have to wait for a lengthy period."