Health Minister Stephen Donnelly has warned that the situation in hospitals is “likely to get worse” as they deal with “perfect storm” of COVID, RSV and flu.
Despite this, he said on Tuesday evening that he does not anticipate any change in advice on mask wearing.
The number of people on trolleys reached record highs on Tuesday as 931 people waited on a hospital bed. The HSE has warned the public to avoid Emergency Departments unless absolutely necessary and recommended that people try all other alternatives before resorting to the hospital.
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Speaking to reporters following a visit to the emergency department in Dublin’s Beaumont Hospital last night [tues], Mr Donnelly said that the HSE has advised that the flu season has yet to peak.
“The advice I have from the Chief Medical Officer is the modelling is difficult in terms of being accurate
“What I can tell you is the HSE’s view when I met them was that this is likely to get worse.
“We are likely to see more pressure. They don't believe that the flu wave has peaked.
“We'll have more up to date figures [on Wednesday] and the following day we'll have indicative figures for this week. That will really help us understand where we're at with COVID, where we're at with the flu.
“What we want to see happen obviously as quickly as possible is the flu wave peak.”
He continued: “We have this perfect storm of RSV, flu and COVID, as well as all of the normal pressures.
“That really has absorbed the significant additional capacity that has been put into the system.”
The Irish Nurse and Midwives Organisation (INMO) had called on Minister Donnelly to introduce a mask mandate in congregated settings to stop the spread of COVID and other viruses.
However, Minister Donnelly said the Chief Medical Officer Dr Breda Smyth has not recommended such a measure and he does not expect a return to large-scale mask wearing.
He said: “I don't anticipate any change coming in terms of the public health advice [on masks] from the Chief Medical Officer.
“However, I want to fully acknowledge the INMO’s concerns. I think they are playing a very constructive role. We had a good chat earlier on today. They're looking for solutions.
“The public health advice to Government and to me at the moment is not to move to mask mandates. But obviously we will keep the situation under review on a daily and on a weekly basis.”
The Minister said that it is recommended that people should wear masks in health care settings or on public transport.
Mr Donnelly visited emergency departments in both Beaumont and St Vincent's Hospitals. He stressed that extra resources will be put in place and that 1,000 additional hospital beds have been put in place.
However, he could not answer questions on how many beds are currently closed across hospitals due to an inability to have adequate levels of staff on site. Some beds may also be closed for infection control and prevention measures.
The Irish Mirror understands Minister Donnelly will update ministers on the situations in emergency departments at the first Cabinet meeting of the year on Wednesday morning.
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