Sligo/Leitrim Deputy Martin Kenny says staff in the Emergency Department at Sligo General Hospital are at breaking point.
The Sinn Fein TD brought the issue of overcrowding and understaffing at the hospital up in the Dail in recent days.
He said he had received e-mails from nurses in recent weeks who said they were so understaffed they were lucky to get a 30 minute break in a 13 hour shift.
Deputy Kenny said he had reason to witness the situation first-hand when he brought his son to the ED with a broken finger.
He said he saw patients who were on trolleys were moved onto chairs during the day, and then back to the trolley overnight while they waited for a bed.
The TD says the hospital and the HSE must act now to resolve the crisis and prevent it from getting worse:
