St Luke's Hospital serving Carlow warns it's 'extremely busy' with 'significant delays'

St Luke's General Hospital, which serves Co. Carlow, has warned that it is "extremely busy" at the moment and that patients are experiencing "significant delays." 

In a statement released yesterday, the HSE said large numbers of people are presenting to the Emergency Department, with many of them needing to be admitted for ongoing treatment, leading to pressure on bed availability. 

Many patients are also presenting with respiratory and serious illnesses, also impacting bed capacity throughout the hospital. 

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"These ongoing pressures are resulting in significant delays being experienced by patients in the ED who are waiting for a bed to become available on a ward. Every effort is being made to discharge patients who are ready to go home so that beds will become available for patients who need to be admitted at the earliest opportunity," the statement said.

The hospital is currently advising that patients who attend its ED for routine and non-urgent treatment will experience longer waiting times.

The HSE acknowledges that these delays are difficult for patients and apologises for the inconvenience delays may cause .

"The ED is always available to treat seriously ill patients, and the sickest patients are seen first. It is expected this pressure will continue over the coming days and we would urge the public to consider their care options and use alternative healthcare services for treatment such as GPs, GP Out of Hours or pharmacists where appropriate," it concluded.