The hospital said its services are under "extreme pressure".
The Mater Hospital in Dublin is urging the public to avoid its emergency department where possible.
In a statement, the hospital said its services are under "extreme pressure" on account of large numbers of people contracting Covid-19, high levels of staff unavailable due to being close contacts or infected with the virus, as well as high numbers of presentations at the emergency department.
It comes as
23,281 new cases of Covid were reported in Ireland on New Year's Day, the highest daily case total since the pandemic began.
As of 8am on Saturday, 656 patients with the virus are hospitalised, of which 85 are in intensive care.
The Mater said that patients presenting at its emergency department with non-urgent conditions are experiencing "lengthy waiting times to be seen".
"Where possible, the Mater advises patients with non-emergency conditions to seek assistance from other parts of the health service such as minor injury units or their GP," it said.
"However, any patient who is in need of emergency hospital care will of course be seen and the Mater would urge such patients not to delay and to seek such care.
"We apologise for any inconvenience this causes to the public and thank them for their understanding and cooperation."
Main image via Leah Farrell / RollingNews.ie
