A number of hospital emergency departments are under "significant pressure", with some seeing record numbers of attendances in recent weeks, according to a consultant in Emergency Medicine at Sligo University Hospital.
Dr Fergal Hickey said there are concerns the spread of the Delta variant of Covid-19 will make the situation "even more difficult".
Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland, Dr Hickey said staff cannot achieve social distancing in most emergency departments. He said: "It's simply impossible as a result of the numbers, and therefore the situation is dangerous.
It will just become more dangerous if we have more patients arising from the Delta variant." Yesterday, the Department of Health reported 534 new cases of Covid-19.