Patients at emergency wait an average of three hours to be allotted ward bed

The average waiting time for a patient to be allotted a bed at Mater Dei Hospital’s Emergency Department is three hours.

The information was given in the House by Health Minister Chris Fearne in a reply to a parliamentary question by Nationalist MP Rebekah Borg.

But, Borg's query only provides the average time a patient waits for a bed when a doctor determines the patient needs one and not the total number of hours a patient must wait in the Emergency Department before seeing a doctor.

The question only gives the average waiting for a patient waits for them to be given a bed after a doctor decides the patient needs a bed.

According to recent posts on social media, patients requiring treatment at Mater Dei Hospital’s Accident and Emergency Department are having to wait several hours. 

Writing on the Facebook group 'Are You Being Served, some have complained of waiting between six to 12 hours before being transferred to the wards.