Nurses at Naas General Hospital have voted overwhelmingly in favour of industrial action as a result of ongoing overcrowding at the hospital.

They follow their colleagues in University Hospital Limerick, Ennis Hospital, Nenagh Hospital and Croom Orthopaedic Hospital, who earlier this week also voted in favour of industrial action.

The nurses are all members of the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation. The Naas members voted 97% in favour of industrial action, while the four other hospitals voted 93% in favour.

The INMO pointed out that its members in Naas staged a lunchtime protest last November to highlight the overcrowding problems in the hospital's Emergency Department (ED), staff shortages and inadequate bed capacity.

The organisation also noted that trolley figures in Naas during 2014 increased by over 60% when compared to 2013, which resulted in patients being cared for in corridors for the first time at the hospital.

It said that staffing shortages are a major issue and 50 additional nurses ‘need to be recruited as a matter of urgency'.

"INMO members are gravely concerned for the wellbeing of patients who have to suffer the indignity of being nursed on a corridor for days at a time. The levels of overcrowding and staff shortages at Naas General are now the worst in the hospital's history," commented INMO industrial relations officer, Derek Reilly.

The industrial action will begin on February 4 and will take the form of a work to rule. This means nurses will not perform any non-clinical, clerical or administrative tasks and will only engage in direct care duties involving the provision of clinical care to patients.

Meanwhile, the industrial action in Limerick, Ennis, Nenagh and Croom is set to begin on February 3 and will also involve a work to rule. The action in these hospitals is also in response to the overcrowding problems and major staff shortages.