Christmas staffing levels will be adequate – HSE

THE Mid-West Health Service Executive (HSE) has reassured relatives of Clare psychiatric patients that staffing in all mental health facilities will be adequate over the Christmas period.

PNA spokesman Denis Meehan had expressed concern that adequate staffing may not be available for the Elderly Care Unit in Cappahard and the Acute Psychiatric Unit in Ennis over the Christmas period, if people did not make themselves available for overtime.
Despite two recent Labour Relations Commission (LRC) hearings, Mr Meehan stated that no agreement has been reached between unions and the HSE concerning the lack of 40 nurses for the Clare Mental Health Services and the over reliance on overtime to cover staffing shortages.
He claimed that a number of psychiatric units were being run with 50% of the agreed staffing levels for the last few weeks.
Commenting on Cappahard Lodge, he claimed that from Tuesday to Friday last week, there were only five nurses on duty during the day up to 5pm when there should have been eight, while one nurse was working in Teach na Baithe, Gort Road, Ennis when there should have been two.
“In Laois and Cork, nurses can be employed on a 40-day short-term contract for emergency situations. In Clare, we are not allowed to do this because of the national recruitment ban. The PNA are very concerned about the staffing situation in the Clare Mental Health Service,” he said
However, a HSE spokeswoman said that the authority had put forward a number of proposals, had engaged in LRC meetings and claimed unions who were supposed to revert to the LRC with proposals within one week had failed to do so.
“It is incorrect to say that psychiatric units are being run with 50% of the agreed staffing levels.  When Cappahard Lodge opened originally, it had eight nurses for 46 residents and the present situation is six nurses for 28 patients. Obviously, as the number of residents reduce, the number of staff required also reduces,” she explained.
She acknowledged the 21.3% decline in the number of nurses working in the service between 2008 and the present day, the national recruitment ban and the need to respond to the complex requirements of a specialised service presented challenges in maintaining the quality and safety of services.