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The Royal College of Nursing has said patients are waiting for days in corridors at Belfast's Royal Victoria Hospital's Emergency Department.

Rita Devlin, NI director of the RCN, visited the unit on Thursday after getting calls from nursing staff.

She described the situation as "scandalous".

A spokesperson for the Belfast Health Trust said its emergency departments are extremely busy and have been for some time.

It said it is managing the pressures as best it can.

Speaking to Radio Ulster's Evening Extra programme, Ms Devlin said while it was the Royal Hospital on Thursday, the situation is "bad right across the EDs".

She said talking to nurses at the Royal, she was struck by "the absolute despair" some are feeling.

"I spoke to some young, newly qualified nurses who are leaving because they just can't take the stress and the pressure any more," she said.

"What we have is an aging population, people who are more complex and sicker, waiting on beds.

"We've a reduction in beds, right across Northern Ireland, we don't have enough staff to look after the patients and it's just scandalous."

Ms Devlin said Northern Ireland's politicians need to return to the executive - which collapsed in February 2022 - and start addressing the problems in the healthcare sector.

"We are extremely concerned about the mental health and wellbeing of a lot of our nursing staff, sickness levels are really high," she said.

"I don't understand how politicians can sit back and let this happen without doing something to intervene and get us back to a position where people in Northern Ireland get the healthcare they deserve."