Over 6,500 patients were left waiting on trolleys in hospitals nationwide last month, 40% more than during the same period in 2014, new figures have shown.

According to the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO), a total of 6,518 patients were left on trolleys in August, with the highest levels of overcrowding in Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda (680), Beaumont Hospital in Dublin (678), University Hospital Limerick (618) and University Hospital Galway (458).

Commenting on the figures, INMO general secretary, Liam Doran, said that patient care is being compromised on a daily basis as a result of this overcrowding.

"We are now beginning the early autumn/winter period, which will only see, in the absence of emergency measures, the overcrowding situation worsen still further as demand continues to grow against the background of staff and bed shortages," he pointed out.

The INMO noted that overcrowding has increased every month this year when compared to the same period in 2014. It described this as a ‘disturbing trend'.