The six major Dublin hospitals have seen a 40 per cent rise in attendances at their casualty departments in the past seven years, the Eastern Health Board says.
The EHB has launched a public education campaign to address the situation, under the slogan "Keep accident and emergency departments clear for real emergencies".
The increase has posed problems for casualty departments which were not designed to cope with so many patients, according to Mr Patrick Plunkett, casualty consultant at St James's Hospital.
