Patients who need hospital treatment are refusing to be admitted for fear of long waiting times on trolleys.
That's according to Local GP and former IMO head Martin Daly, who has warned that some people who should be in hospital are instead being treated at home or in other settings.
His comments follow the story of a Castlerea man who spent 65 hours on a trolley at Portiuncula Hospital in Ballinasloe.
Henry described his experience this morning on the Joe Finnegan show:
"I couldn't sleep. You just cannot sleep on a trolley, it's nearly impossible. It's just a waiting game. You don't know when you're gonna get brought in at all. There's nothing that they can do, their hands are tied. It's needs to get fixed".
Responding to the account, Ballygar GP Martin Daly says that patients are at risk from not receiving care in the proper place.
Speaking to Eoghan Murphy on the show this morning, Dr Daly says older patients especially are scared of hospital admissions.
"I had two elderly people yesterday who refused to go to hospital in circumstances where their experience was one of injury, long waiting times, in very uncomfortable circumstances, with lack of privacy, lack of dignity. The most desirable outcome for their problems would be in a hospital environment, so we are now managing them in a less desirable situation where they are at more risk of a poor outcome."
