Latest news with #IrishNursesandMidwivesOrganisation
Irish Examiner
02-06-2025
- Health
- Irish Examiner
Doctors write to health minister over 'deeply damaging' decision on northwest surgical hub
A group of 170 doctors in Donegal have written to the health minister, saying not awarding a new surgical hub to the county is 'flawed, unjustified, and deeply damaging' for patients. Plans to build surgical hubs nationally were first announced in December 2022, with an 18-month turnaround time predicted. However, so far only one of the six has opened, with funding allocated for hubs in Cork, Waterford, and Limerick. A location for the northwest hub has not yet been named, but it has recently emerged this is likely set for Sligo and not Donegal. Now, GPs and hospital doctors have called on health minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill to meet with them and hear the arguments against that decision. Dr Padraig McGuinness said the decision ignores the reality of local geography. 'Donegal has a larger population than the combined areas of Sligo, Leitrim, South Donegal, and Cavan,' he said. Many of our patients would face round trips of five hours or more to access elective surgical care in Sligo. That's unacceptable and dangerous. He added: "This isn't just about a building or a budget line. It's about whether Donegal patients are treated as equals in our health system. Right now, they're not.' Pressures on Letterkenny hospital are a key reason why they need the hub, argued Dr Louise Moran, consultant in intensive care and anaesthetics. "Patients in Donegal already face some of the worst cancer survival rates in the country due to late presentation and access issues,' she warned. 'To bypass Letterkenny again is not only medically indefensible, it's a direct hit on patient safety and regional equality.' Letterkenny is often among the most overcrowded hospitals in the country as recorded by the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation. The hubs are seen as a central part of plans to tackle overcrowding. Each is expected to deliver 10,000 day case surgeries and minor procedures, and 18,500 outpatient consultations every year. Plans by the HSE to instead offer Letterkenny an ambulatory care centre for outpatients are seen by this group of doctors as 'an inadequate substitute lacking ring-fenced funding, staffing plans, or timelines.' Consultant general surgeon Michael Sugrue said: 'We need real surgical infrastructure, not vague promises'. He warned of the long-term impact for recruitment at Letterkenny University Hospital. Without adequate surgical resources, we simply cannot attract or retain the consultants we need. "This decision risks the future of general surgery in Donegal and the long-term viability of LUH as a Model 3 hospital,' he said. They called for an evidence-based review of the HSE's plans to locate the hub in Sligo. In April HSE regional executive officer Tony Canavan said a proposal to build a surgical hub linked to Sligo hospital has been submitted. "We've identified a site for it that will be considered by the HSE senior leadership team in mid-May and then to the board of the HSE at the end of May,' he told RTÉ News.
Irish Examiner
12-05-2025
- Health
- Irish Examiner
Recruitment challenges in Cork and Kerry impacting delivery of health services
Rural health services in Cork and Kerry are struggling to attract nurses due to the housing crisis, with much-needed beds closed as a result. Concern is also growing at shortages of Irish-speaking healthcare staff to support older people in the southwest Gaeltacht areas. Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation industrial relations officer Liam Conway said rural patients are missing out. 'In Kerry in the likes of Cahersiveen, Dingle it's very difficult to get rental accommodation. The same would be seen in the likes of West Cork so housing is a barrier that needs to be addressed.' Staff shortages have led to 'challenges around supply of beds in older persons services' in Kenmare and Cahersiveen. That is impacting on respite care, being able to receive residential care in your community and being able to be discharged from University Hospital Kerry — people can't get transferred back to their locality for the necessary rehab. At the West Kerry Community Hospital in Dingle, 11 beds in a purpose-built module have yet to be used. He described the national recruitment policy – pay and numbers strategy - as 'an own goal'. He also called for restoration of Gaeltacht allowances — 'close to 10% on top of your salary' — removed during the 2008 recession. 'You want to attract staff to the Gaeltacht who can speak the language,' he said. South Kerry is 'particularly challenged' in finding public health nurses, he said. New Sláintecare services including teams for older people known as ICPOP are also struggling. A HSE South-West spokesperson said: 'There are well documented challenges in recruiting staff to some of our facilities in more rural locations. West Kerry Community Hospital's location on a peninsula can make recruitment even more challenging.' They ran multiple hiring campaigns but she said 'unfortunately these recruitment efforts have had limited success'. Kenmare Community Nursing Unit will open seven beds 'in the coming months', she said. New staff have recently started work with recruitment continuing. Read More Low uptake of free HRT scheme raises concern among pharmacists
Irish Examiner
08-05-2025
- Health
- Irish Examiner
Attack with fire extinguisher, punches, and racist comments among daily assaults on nurses
An assault with a fire extinguisher, punches to the face, fractured bones, and racist comments were some of the fearful attacks described at the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) conference. They warned a survey revealing 11 daily assaults on average last year was still relevant today. One nurse from Monaghan told the conference the hospital did not have any security. 'Last year, one of my colleagues was attacked by a very aggressive patient, and her finger — her ring finger — was bent back and fractured,' she said. 'Another colleague was hit in the face.' Some could not describe their attacks from the podium as investigations are ongoing. Speaking privately, one nurse said she was punched and kicked during a night shift by a man who came into the ward. When she tried to run away, he followed her and 'he took the fire extinguisher and sprayed it on me". A nurse in Dundalk said she was 'battling' with management to improve security, saying: 'We should not have to fear for our safety while at work.' A nurse with the Dublin South-West branch, Ibukun Oyedele, proposed to the conference the HSE bring in 'appropriate security measures' for all health centres. 'Everyone has the right to work in an environment free from abuse or harassment of any kind,' she said. Covid Her colleague, Association of Nigerian Nurses in Ireland vice president Christopher Ibanga, said in his eight years working in Ireland, the situation had worsened. 'I think covid unfortunately could play a role,' he said. 'I work in public health and we were managing covid cases, doing contact tracing. We had a lot of resistance and that resistance has continued even though not as high as during covid. We receive a lot of reports from Nigerian nurses and this abuse gets to another level when the colour of your skin is different. This is something we have to talk about. A nurse in Cashel, Co Tipperary, proposed the HSE should compensate them for abuse. 'The danger money refers to hazardous pay, a compensation to pay employees for working in these hazardous environments,' she said. However, a nurse at University Hospital Limerick cautioned "unsafe practice cannot be compensated with money' and called for change instead. Health minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill attended the conference in Wexford, and told reporters there was 'no justification' for abuse. 'There's no reason to assault anybody, but in particular a healthcare worker,' she said. She takes the complaints 'very seriously' she said, adding many patients do not harm staff despite delays they face. 'I recognise there are some hospitals that are much more overcrowded than we would want them to be, and we are trying to increase capacity and trying to change work practices to make that a better environment for everybody,' she said. The INMO found over a 13-month period starting in January 2023, about 11 assaults were reported every day to the HSE. Read More Majority of nurses say staffing levels pose risk to patient safety, INMO survey finds
Irish Examiner
08-05-2025
- Health
- Irish Examiner
Housing an 'issue for everybody', not just nurses, health minister tells INMO conference
The health minister has pushed responsibility for housing nurses onto hospital management, saying the crisis is an issue for everyone and not just public sector workers. Jennifer O'Carroll MacNeill was speaking during the second day of the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) conference in Wexford. The conference heard many nurses lived in 'inappropriate' housing at extremely high rents and some live two hours or more from their workplace. One nurse said 'it's a dream' now to buy a house on her salary. Fears were also raised the new children's hospital would struggle to recruit nurses due to shortages of affordable housing in that area of Dublin. Housing is one of the biggest issues for this Government, the minister said. 'But it is an issue for everybody, it is an issue for retail workers who are not paid by the public purse as much as it is for nurses. This is a challenge everywhere,' she said. 'And certainly, I think as we go forward it is a matter for hospital managers to see what they can do in terms of additional accommodation on site for emergency situations.' Nurses also discussed low staffing numbers, with 61.5% saying they thought about leaving in the past month. The minister acknowledged these pressures, saying work continued on a framework for safe staffing, as well as opening of more beds. On Thursday, 417 patients could not get a bed in hospitals, including 88 at University Hospital Limerick, and 28 at Cork University Hospital, INMO data showed. 'Limerick is in a particular difficulty and they need that 96-bed block,' Ms Carroll MacNeill said, referring to a block opening in September. 'I look at the [trolley] figures every weekend and I note that Limerick actually got to amber once, which is a big step for Limerick.' This hospital was 'one of the first' to make changes to rostering, she added. She pointed to virtual wards and other digital changes as other ways pressures could be eased. In a speech, INMO president Caroline Gourley called on Ms Carroll MacNeill to support patients and staff. 'Minister, this requires three things on the part of the State,' she said. 'Ensuring we focus on the true underlying principles of universal healthcare through Sláintecare, looking after healthcare workers to ensure they can look after the most vulnerable, and getting staffing right.' Ms Gourley also said: 'We are thinking of course of our colleagues in Palestine. 'This summer we will welcome six paediatric nurses from Palestine to Dublin, so they can learn from colleagues in the Irish health service. Their workplaces should be off limits. 'Those who target healthcare workers or their workplaces must be held accountable and brought to justice under international humanitarian laws.'
Irish Examiner
08-05-2025
- Politics
- Irish Examiner
Irish Examiner view: Common sense must prevail
It is entirely understandable that readers are looking at events in Ukraine and Gaza with a mixture of revulsion and concern. The Russian invasion of Ukraine means there is open war on the continent of Europe, while savage conflict in the Middle East has been a staple of our news diet, unfortunately, for decades. Another long-simmering enmity now appears to be edging towards open war, though in a part of the world which may appear remote from us. The conflict is a legacy of British colonial rule: India and Pakistan both gained independence from Britain in 1947 but the territory of Kashmir, in the foothills of the Himalayas, has been a flashpoint ever since. The two countries have spent almost 80 years disputing ownership of the region and have fought three wars as a result. In recent days those border skirmishes have become more deadly, with Pakistani officials claiming more than 20 civilians had been killed by Indian strikes, while India has claimed several civilians died in Pakistani shelling. Both nations have exchanged heavy artillery fire. The EU has already called for de-escalation, and those calls have been replicated by other countries. Iran — which shares a border with Pakistan — has called on the two countries to exercise restraint, while Turkey has also called for calm. One does not need to be a professor of geopolitics to appreciate the gravity of the situation when those two countries, quite capable of striking a bellicose pose themselves, are so concerned. Focusing on the wider implications of the invasion of Ukraine may have blinded us to the possible results of this conflict widening. China, for instance, shares a border with Kashmir and could be dragged into a conflict here, which would be catastrophic. Common sense and calm must prevail here for all our sakes. Climate change: Adapting to new extremes The effects of the climate crisis are having an impact on all of us, with some of those effects now visible in unexpected corners of Irish life. The annual conference of the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) began this week, and delegates heard of challenges facing its members — such as exhaustion and burnout. They also heard a motion calling for the INMO to engage with the HSE on how red weather warnings are managed in relation to staff. The motion stated that the red weather event policy should be reviewed to ensure its fairness: 'The employer's approach must be reasonable and supportive, prioritising the safety and wellbeing of staff. 'Furthermore, nurses/midwives who attend work during extreme weather conditions must receive timely and adequate compensation — with no undue delays or obstacles in accessing their entitlements.' This motion illustrates the real world impact of climate change. What's your view on this issue? You can tell us here With more and more red weather warnings, employers and employees alike must settle on work practices which are safe and practical. This is particularly true for frontline workers who have to deal with such hazardous conditions first-hand. Nurses and midwives are an obvious cohort of workers who will have to work no matter how severe the weather, and the likes of gardaí, firefighters, and paramedics are the same. Those workers' representative bodies are likely to follow the example of the INMO in seeking compensation for working during extreme weather events. Readers can expect plenty of debate on this matter, but it would be helpful if such discussions focused on the initial part of the INMO motion — that employers adopt a reasonable approach, particularly at a time when remote working obviates the need in so many sectors for workers to travel. It is more worrying to consider this in the wider context of how our weather is changing, and what that means for our future. At what point, for instance, will weather events we now see as 'extreme' become normal? Voice of reason Former US president Joe Biden broke his silence this week, giving his first in-depth interview since leaving the White House. Mr Biden touched on several subjects but was unsparing in his criticism of his replacement, Donald Trump, specifically using 'appeasement' to describe Mr Trump's policy on Ukraine. This term carries connotations of the 1930s and the way the democracies of western Europe agreed to Adolf Hitler's territorial ambitions. When war eventually erupted, those politicians who had sought to appease Hitler — such as Britain's Neville Chamberlain — were regarded with ignominy and their reputations destroyed. The implicit comparison with Mr Chamberlain will not please Mr Trump, given his child-like need to be seen as a strongman, but the Biden interview is more instructive in other ways. It shows the lack of response from other American politicians to Mr Trump's behaviour over his first 100 days in office, from his cavalier treatment of legal process and economic norms to pardoning the January 6 rioters and using an executive order to insist the Gulf of Mexico be referred to as the Gulf of America. Many of the politicians who might be expected to oppose those measures have been ineffectual, if not invisible, thus emboldening the Trump administration even further. The White House has continued with an unrelenting stream of decisions, cuts, and orders in the absence of opposition. The irony will surely not be lost on Mr Biden and his inner circle that he was jettisoned by his party after a poor performance in a presidential debate, but now he has offered some of the most trenchant criticism — and most coherent opposition — of president Donald Trump we have yet heard. Read More Irish Examiner view: People suffering due to lack of staff in HSE
