60 empty beds at private unit as University Hospital Limerick faces record demand

More than 2,370 additional patient attendances have been recorded at University Hospital Limerick (UHL) year‑to‑date compared with the same period last year, while 60 beds remain empty at the nearby private Raheen Lodge facility.

The HSE Mid West released the figures on Sunday, highlighting a persistent capacity crisis in the region’s acute hospitals. Raheen Lodge, an 80‑bed, €20 million unit opened by Bartra Healthcare last May, has 60 state‑of‑the‑art en‑suite beds unoccupied 1.8 km from UHL.

Bartra Healthcare has applied for a contract to provide step‑down or “intermediary care” beds to the HSE but is still awaiting a response. Twenty of the unit’s beds are currently occupied by long‑term and short‑stay patients, and the facility includes an on‑site doctor, nurses, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, a gym and its own ambulance service.

Bartra chief executive Angela Ring said up to 30 staff are on standby to operate the step‑down beds, but delays in reaching an agreement could see those staff lost. She described the situation as “frustrating” and noted that the beds would relieve pressure on UHL and other regional hospitals, including St John’s, Croom, Ennis and Nenagh.

Bartra’s data, based on HSE statistics, show that for the first eight months of the year an average of 38 acute beds in the Mid‑West were occupied daily by patients approved for discharge elsewhere, peaking at 66 on 14 August. At UHL, 25 acute beds were occupied each day by patients awaiting transfer, and 28 beds were redeployed from their intended use.

The HSE Mid West warned that “immediate interventions and substantial long‑term investment in acute hospital capacity” are needed, noting additional funding for 34 short‑stay beds but cautioning that this alone will not resolve overcrowding.

Source: Limerick Post. Photo: Svet Svet / Pexels.