The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) is to ballot its members for industrial action on Monday over “large gaps” in the nursing and midwifery workforce.
The INMO said it is impacting the ability of its members to provide safe care.
INMO representatives from around the country gave examples of short staffing and “high risk” situations during a meeting at the Richmond Education Centre in Dublin on Saturday.
They said it is arising from the HSE’s “de-facto” recruitment ban.
Many nursing posts in cancer, palliative, paediatric and rehab care are being left vacant, according to the INMO.
They said this is leading to increasing demands from HSE management on staff to work on days off, stay on for significant unpaid periods after a shift ends as well as dealing with increasing levels of frustration from the public who are waiting longer for services.
INMO president Caroline Gourley said: “INMO members have provided us with example after example of posts not being filled when a colleague leaves or retires and posts that are deemed essential under the ED agreement not being filled.
“While there is a Framework for Safe Nurse Staffing and Skill Mix, many of the posts measured as necessary to provide safe care under this are not being filled.
“A large number of temporary vacancies are being left vacant due to leave, particularly maternity leave, this is leading to extremely high-risk situations for patients and working conditions which compromise the health and safety of the rostered nurses and midwives.
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“The expectation of the HSE is that nurses and midwives will work beyond their shift end time, volunteer for additional shifts on days off and that this ‘good will’ is expected to continue over this winter – INMO representatives have now made it very clear that that will not be the case.
“The HSE have designed a laborious, time-wasting process of application for safety-critical posts under the Pay and Numbers Strategy, which is designed to prolong the recruitment process.
“We are now seeing instances where it is taking up to 12 months to recruit much-needed nurses and midwives into vacant posts. This has had a hugely negative impact on nursing and midwifery.”
INMO general secretary Phil Ni Sheaghdha said: “Care that is provided from the start of life until the end is now compromised due to the HSE’s so-called recruitment caps, which are a moratorium by any other name, nursing posts are remaining vacant in hospitals and in the community right across the country.
“We know that there are severe gaps in staffing across maternity, oncology and palliative care in various acute hospitals across the country including Wexford General Hospital, Connolly Hospital, University Hospital Limerick, Cork University Hospital and Galway University Hospital.
“Prioritisation lists are now in place across many services due to vacant nursing and midwifery posts not being filled.
“The recruitment freeze is having a detrimental impact on the provision of care. What we are seeing is a postcode lottery when it comes to vital start-of-life and end-of-life care, the removal of vital nursing and midwifery posts will only exacerbate this.
“The filling of vacant posts in new regional health authorities is now based on who shouts the loudest, not clinical need.
“This is wrong, it is contrary to agreements trade unions have with the HSE and it will form the basis of our upcoming ballot of members.
“Patients who need care and those providing it to them deserve better.”