A 30-year-old man has been charged in connection with the fatal assault of a patient at Mercy University Hospital in Cork on Sunday morning.
The man, who remains in garda custody, will appear before Cork District Court this morning.
Matthew Healy, an 89-year-old widower from Berrings in Co Cork, received severe injuries in the incident, and despite the best efforts of staff could not be saved.
He was a patient in a general ward at the hospital.
It is understood a male nurse was also injured during the incident.
Prayers in his memory were said across the parish of Inniscarra yesterday morning.
The retired farmer, whose wife Delia only died on 2 January, was remembered with great affection in his home village where the mood was very sombre.
Following the incident, the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation called for a full security audit of all hospitals.
In a statement, hospital management said that counselling services are being provided to patients and staff affected by the incident.
Management and staff are "saddened and shocked at the tragic and unexpected death of an elderly patient in an incident at the hospital ... and express their deepest condolences to the family, relatives and friends", they added.
