The busiest accident and emergency department in the State has "coped as well as usual" over the bank-holiday weekend.
Mr Derek Brown, nursing manager at the A&E department in Dublin's Mater Hospital, said yesterday his department had had "an average bank-holiday weekend - a bit busier than the average weekend".
Although there was one fewer nurse on duty than usual, he said the department was "run by nurses and junior doctors at the weekends anyway, and so things were no different than usual". Between 8 a.m. on Saturday and 8 a.m. yesterday, 30 patients were admitted to the Mater via its A&E department. Some 101 people attended the department in those 24 hours. The department had a busy Saturday night, said Mr Brown, particularly when five people were admitted in the early hours of Sunday morning following a fire at a local B & B. There were no car accidents, though there were a few deaths.
Though busy, the department seemed calm at lunchtime yesterday. Relatives and friends of patients, waiting outside the department were reluctant to talk to anyone, though one woman, Ms Jimena Morales, said the nurses were "extremely cranky".
"I know they are under strain, but they shouldn't be like that when people out here are worried."
At Beaumont Hospital, the A&E department was relatively quiet yesterday afternoon. Approximately 10 people were waiting to be seen. One man, had injured his shoulder playing football. He had been told he would be waiting about half-an-hour and had already been there over two hours. "No one said anything about delays because of the strike."
Some 26 patients were admitted to the hospital via its A&E department between Saturday and yesterday morning and 86 people attended the department during the same 24 hours.
Between 8 a.m. on Saturday and 8 a.m. yesterday, 18 patients were admitted to Tallaght Hospital though its A&E department and 49 people attended the department; 17 were admitted to St James's Hospital through A&E and 103 attended the department and at St Vincent's Hospital 16 were admitted through A&E and 49 attended the department.
An opinion poll published yesterday showed strong support for the nurses in their strike. Seventy per cent of those surveyed hold the Government responsible for precipitating the strike, while 66 per cent support the nurses' strike decision.
The Sunday Independent/IMS national poll shows that 29 per cent believe that the nurses should have accepted the Labour Court terms. Five per cent have no view.
