BACKGROUND: Crowding in the Emergency Department is internationally recognised as one of the greatest challenges to healthcare provision. Numerous studies have highlighted the ill-effects of crowding, including increased length of stay, mortality and cost per admission. Crowding is typically a manifestation of a hospital at full capacity and its main contributor is the practice of boarding patients in the ED. Therefore, a functioning flow system is advised to ease the burden. Different predictive tools/algorithms assess the degree of crowding. The National Emergency Department Overcrowding Scale (NEDOCS) is used effectively in other countries but has not been validated in Ireland. AIMS: METHODS: Application of the NEDOCS score in the Emergency Department along with the use of internal Patient Administration System (PAS) to track patient movement through the ED. RESULTS: During the three week period, the NEDOCS score was frequently at level 6 (dangerously overcrowded) or level 5 (severely overcrowded) (see ). Emergency patient registrations peaked between 1000 hours to 1300 hours whereas the peak admission time to wards was between 1900 hours and 2300 hours. At a random time point, Universal staff perception of crowding in the department was perceived as ‘It’s a nice day’. However the NEDOCS level was 4 (overcrowded) suggesting significant crowding.(Figure is included in full-text article.)(Figure is included in full-text article.) CONCLUSION: Our Hospital is operating at a consistent level of crowding that can negatively impact on patients. Access to inpatient beds is available late in the day, creating a time lag between decision to admit and transfer to ward. Staff perception did not correlate with NEDOCs score, possibly reflecting a conditioning and acceptance of staff to crowding. DISCUSSION: We plan to validate the NEDOCS score in an Irish Emergency Department. Crowding is a significant issue in the Irish Healthcare setting. The ‘40% of inpatient beds by 11 am’ needs to be adopted by our hospital. Our study suggests that our emergency staff accept the dysfunctional as the norm.