The Mater Hospital in Dublin has said it has received an encouraging response to its appeal for nurses to work in the hospital, as accident and emergency (A & E) admissions rise dramatically.
The hospital is looking for nurses who may have left the sector to work elsewhere or in the home, but who are still on the nursing register and available for work.
A spokeswoman said nurses had contacted the hospital inquiring about work opportunities. The hospital is in need of staff over the next few days as A & E admissions increase compared with last year.
The spokeswoman said management had never seen admissions rise to such a level before.
The situation has worsened in the days since Christmas because the hospital has been forced to close 100 beds due to the lack of nurses.
The large number of nurses out sick and the lack of availability of GPs were cited as reasons for the increase in A & E numbers yesterday in some Dublin hospitals.
The Mater used some of its 100 closed beds yesterday, but the spokeswoman said the situation remained strained.
"We are asking people with a nursing qualification to come forward and are offering them flexible opportunities. Obviously they have to be interviewed and vetted by our nursing management, but we need people urgently," she said.
Other hospitals have also reported increasing A & E admissions. Figures from Cork University Hospital between December 24th and 28th indicate large increases.
There were 144 admissions on December 28th compared with 76 on the same date last year. There were 138 admissions on December 24th, compared with 70 on the same date last year.
A spokeswoman for University College Hospital Galway and Mayo General Hospital said the level of admissions was also very high, with Mayo's figures considerably up on last year. However, the spokeswoman said both hospitals should be able to cope for the millennium.
Meanwhile, a spokesman for the Dublin Fire Brigade issued a warning that if a major incident occurs on millennium night, the emergency services may not be able to respond adequately.
He said fire brigades were often forced to cover for ambulance crews and if a fire occurred somewhere else in the city there might be a problem. He said there were only 11 ambulances in Dublin city and county and this was "completely inadequate" considering that this had been the level of cover since 1985.
"The number of calls has doubled since then, but the provision is exactly the same, which is not enough," said the spokesman.