HSE Recruitment Cap must be lifted to protect patient care and safety – Labour PMB
The Labour Party is calling on government parties to back the Labour Party Dáil motion to end the cap on healthcare recruitment and deliver safe staffing levels in our hospitals and community services to support patient care.
Under the new HSE Pay and Numbers Strategy, positions are deliberately being left vacant and unfilled, and this is putting even more pressure on frontline staff, and undermining services.
The Private Members’ Motion will be debated on Wednesday, October 23rd at 10am.
Speaking in advance of the motion, Labour health spokesperson Duncan Smith said:
“Government parties can’t hide from the impact their policies are having on our frontline healthcare services. The HSE’s de-facto recruitment embargo is damaging to patient safety, undermining care, and impacting on efforts to retain staff.
“Thousands of positions across the country are deliberately being left vacant. Local clinical managers have been stripped of autonomy and can’t fill vacancies when a healthcare worker retires, changes job or takes maternity leave.
“Healthcare workers are being forced to do more with less, and safe patient care is not guaranteed.
“The INMO has highlighted that thousands of positions were abolished over the last two years under the last embargo, and nursing posts in cancer, palliative, paediatric, and rehab care are being left vacant.
“If you’re sick, you should get access to safe and timely care but over 700,000 people are on hospital waiting lists, and trolley numbers in our Emergency Departments remain too high.
“Speaking to healthcare workers, it’s clear that they are extremely concerned about the weeks and months ahead. Each worker goes above and beyond for their patients but the Government simply is not valuing them.
“The HSE’s Pay and Numbers strategy will mean vital positions across the system will be left vacant. Government representatives have to accept responsibility for this. It’s also now taking up to a year to fill vital positions.
“The Labour Party believes that roles that are critical to patient safety should be filled. A comprehensive workforce planning strategy is needed to ensure that enough qualified staff are being trained and recruited and that we retain those we already have.
“Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael can’t continue to ignore the concerns of healthcare workers and they must address core issues like staff safety and providing key worker housing, so no healthcare worker is priced out of living in the community they serve.
“Ireland’s health infrastructure is struggling to meet demand, and that has to change. Every day, people are seeing the impact of this first hand.
“Understaffing in the health service is impacting the ability of staff to provide safe care. It’s putting patients at risk and it’s damaging our efforts to retain existing staff.
“Healthcare workers deserve better. I am calling on all TDs to support Labour’s motion next Wednesday in the Dáil. Together, we can build a healthcare system that works.”