An interim report on HIQA's review examining the case for a second emergency department in the Midwest is expected within the next three to four weeks.

Public consultation opened last month on the independent statutory review for which the ultimate findings are due this summer.

It comes as overcrowding has spiralled once again at University Hospital Limerick with 138 waiting for a bed at the facility this morning according to the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation.

Lahinch-based Patient Advocate on HSE Midwest's Programme Improvement Board John Wall has been telling Clare FM's Seán Lyons he believes when it comes to the prospect of a second ED in this region, it's a question of when, not if.