The INMO say nurses are facing into extremely challenging and dangerous work environments this Winter.
The union is calling for all private beds in the country to be used, to avoid pressure mounting on staff in public hospitals.
Liam Conway from the INMO says there was a reduction in the number of beds during the pandemic, and this number is still not back to normal more than 2 years later.
His comments come as 86 patients are waiting on trolleys at Cork's two emergency hospitals today.
Speaking to RedFM news, Liam Conway said trolley numbers are already surpassing Winter figures:
"It is completely inexcusable, it's unacceptable and urgent action is now required. There's not enough focus on the overcrowding and bed capacity. We don't have enough beds in Cork University Hospital and we don't have enough beds in the community. We've seen a reduction in beds since COVID and they haven't come back into the system and that's why we're seeing the exacerbation of trolley numbers in September."
