The Health Information and Quality Authority has published seven inspection reports on hospitals regarding compliance with the National Standards for Safer Better Healthcare.
The inspections were conducted between December 2022 and March 2023.
The hospitals involved were Connolly Hospital Blanchardstown in Dublin, St Luke's General Hospital Kilkenny, Wexford General Hospital, University Hospital Galway, Mallow General Hospital, Roscommon University Hospital and St Camillus Community Hospital in Limerick.
Partial compliance was found in the emergency department at St Luke's, with mixed levels of non-compliance in both Wexford and University Hospital Galway.
At St Luke's there were long wait times for triage and medical review and long wait times by admitted patients in the emergency departments awaiting an inpatient bed.
In Wexford General, inspectors observed that while patients in cubicles were afforded privacy and dignity, this was not the same for patients being cared for on trolleys and chairs in the open corridors of the department.
At University Hospital Galway, the emergency department was not functioning as effectively as it should be.
The emergency department was overcrowded, had significant issues with patient flow and was compromising privacy, dignity and confidentiality of patients accommodated on trolleys and chairs.
Overall, HIQA said that generally good levels of compliance were found in Connolly, Mallow General, Roscommon and St Camillus in Limerick.
