A nurses' union warned today that it may resort to industrial action unless overcrowding at the hospital Accident & Emergency Department is eased.

The Emergency Nurses Union said it was concerned about what it described as “the shameful situation” at the department.

It said it had been highlighting the problem of overcrowding and the shortage of beds at Mater Dei and had also warned the Health Department that the problem would escalate in winter.

It said that the main areas of the Emergency Department (Area 1 and Area 2) were being blocked with more than 40 patients waiting in corridors on stretchers for hours on end. These patients would be waiting for a bed and would have no basic toilet facilities.

This situation was causing more stress on the A&E nursing staff and the union said it was holding the Health Department management responsible should something happen to patients who were seen and treated immediately but had to wait endlessly for a bed in the wards.

“The lack of proper planning in the state of the art hospital is only causing pain and suffering to the patients and increased stress and demotivation to the staff who try to do everything they can to make these patients as comfortable as possible,” the union said.

It said that serious and prompt action was needed for a quick solution to avoid such situations, which were putting patients’ health and nursing staff at risk.