More than 8,000 patients over 70 years had to wait in excess of nine hours in the emergency department (ED ) of University Hospital Galway last year, it was revealed this week.
In all, almost 15,000 people over 70 attended the ED in 2023 while the total number of patients of all ages waiting longer than nine hours was 26,561, according to Anne Cosgrove, the chief operations officer with the Saolta University Health Care Group which runs the public hospitals in the west and north-west of the country.
She was replying to a question from Cllr John Connolly at this week’s meeting of the HSE West’s regional health forum. He was seeking figures regarding ED waiting times, particularly those relating to patients over 70 years.
Ms Cosgrove told the meeting that a total of 75,234 patients attended UHG’s A&E department last year.
