It is not possible to be definitive as to the total nursing complement required to provide adequate staffing for hospitals. The Commission on Nursing recommended that the Department of Health and Children, health service providers and nursing organisations examine the development of appropriate systems to determine nursing staffing levels. The need to address skill mix issues was also highlighted in the Commission on Nursing report. Both of these recommendations are included in the priority action plan agreed with the Nursing Alliance as part of the settlement of the nurses' strike. It has been agreed that these issues will be addressed by a working group representative of nursing unions and health service employers. This working group held its first meeting on 15 May 2000.
The results of the most recent survey of nursing vacancies carried out by the Health Service Employers Agency, HSEA, confirmed again that there is not a nation-wide problem regarding the availability of nurses and that difficulties largely relate to the greater Dublin area.
It should also be noted that nurse recruitment is carried out on an ongoing basis in most hospitals, and the level of vacancies fluctuate accordingly. At any given time, significant numbers of nurses would be in the process of being appointed by employers or moving from one employment to another.
There were 3,236 temporary whole time equivalent nursing posts at 31 December 1998 according to the Department's health service personnel census. This figure represented 12.1% of the total number. While the 1999 census is not yet to hand, I can inform the Deputy that a significant number of temporary posts were converted to permanent positions during 1999 under phase two of the conversion process outlined in the 1997 nurses' pay agreement. Under this process temporary nurses who had one year's continuous wholetime service with their employer at 1 June 1998 or who had worked a minimum of 4,000 hours in the six years prior to 1 June 1998 and were available for work on a full-time or part-time basis were eligible to compete.
Where the number of eligible applicants exceeded the number of vacancies-posts which could be filled-converted, applicants were issued with letters of comfort and offered permanent appointments as vacancies-opportunities arise. Health services management and unions are in agreement that the volume of temporary employment should be reduced to a minimum consistent with operational requirements.
While the recruitment and retention of nurses is primarily a matter for individual employers, initiatives have been taken or are being progressed with a view to stabilising the situation and, where possible, improving it.