asked the Minister for Local Government and Public Health if he will state why he refused to accord his sanction to the order of the Joint Committee of Grangegorman and Portrane Mental Hospitals made in November, 1941, authorising the Resident Medical Superintendent to exercise a discretion when appointing Protestant nurses, so far as the requirements in regard to age and height limits are concerned, until a sufficient number of Protestant nurses is recruited; whether he is aware that of the 320 nurses employed in Grangegorman and Portrane only five are Protestants, and that as one or more of these nurses must be absent from time to time on annual leave, night duty and sick leave, there is not a sufficient number in either Grangegorman or Portrane to accompany patients and remain with them at Church of Ireland, Presbyterian and Methodist services; whether he is further aware that advertisements recently inserted in three North of Ireland newspapers and in four Church magazines inviting applications from Protestant candidates elicited but few applications and those from applicants some of whom were under height or under age; and, whether, in view of the great inconvenience and injustice caused to patients of the aforesaid denominations in the matter of attending to their religious duties, he will reconsider his decision and accord his sanction to the joint committee's order.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Appointment of Nurses.
I would like to take the opportunity which this question presents to refer to certain misstatements which were made in the public Press in regard to the employment of Protestant nurses in Grangegorman and Portrane. One of the Dublin daily papers of the 19th December last, in a report of a meeting of the joint committee of management of the mental hospital held on the previous day, at which the recruitment of Protestant nurses was considered, published a statement which was purported to have been made at that meeting that there was a shortage of about a dozen Protestant nurses. In a Dublin evening newspaper of the same date it was stated editorially that at the moment there are vacancies for a dozen nurses, and that the vacancies can be filled at once if the age and height clauses are eliminated. In a communication dated the 3rd instant, received from the chief clerk of the mental hospital, it was pointed out that it was never stated at a meeting of the committee that there were a dozen vacancies on the nursing staff. The latest information obtained in my Department shows there are no vacancies on the nursing staff at present, but that there will be five vacancies before the end of this month. It was further stated in a communication dated the 5th instant that it was never the intention of the joint committee to place additional expenditure on the rates by the appointment of supernumerary nurses on the staff.
On the 25th November last the joint committee did request the Minister's consent to the chief resident medical superintendent being granted temporary permission to waive the usual age and height limits in the case of otherwise eligible candidates until the services of a sufficient number of Protestant nurses have been secured. Regulation 116 of the regulations for the management of the mental hospital appeared to have a bearing on the qualifications in regard to age and height of nurses. The proposal submitted to the Department made no reference to that regulation, nor was it sufficiently detailed to justify the course that was proposed to be taken. Moreover, there was nothing in the information supplied to the Department in November last which would indicate that the difficulty in regard to the employment of Protestant nurses had only recently arisen. The proposal of the committee was not agreed to.
On the 6th instant there were 333 nurses in the Mental Hospital, and of these nine were Protestants. Two of these nurses, who are temporary, were then under notice to leave, and one is on leave of absence.
I am aware that the joint committee have taken all steps possible to secure Protestant candidates. The information recently received in my Department indicates that the difficulty experienced by the joint committees in obtaining the service of Protestant nurses is not solely a question of age and height limits. Of 16 applications recently received from females of that denomination, five did not attend for examination, four failed the educational examination, two who were eligible were appointed, but one subsequently left, one was not available for duty immediately, one has been notified for employment, while three were to be considered by the visiting committee at their meeting on the 12th instant. Since that meeting there has been received an application for sanction to the employment of two Protestant applicants who passed the educational and medical tests but are over the prescribed age limits. Provisional approval to their employment has been conveyed to the committee. I am not satisfied, however, as to the propriety of adopting the course proposed by the joint committee which is to adhere to the present regulations regarding height and age, but to waive them only in the case of candidates belonging to the Protestant religion until a sufficient number is recruited. This matter is still the subject of correspondence with the joint committee.
Is the Parliamentary Secretary aware that the Minister's reply in December to the joint committee's request of November was in the nature of a point blank refusal to accord sanction and that no further information was sought by the Minister on the occasion on which he wrote that letter? Is the Parliamentary Secretary further aware that vacancies arise almost every month on the nursing staffs in Grangegorman and Portrane hospitals by reason of resignations of nurses from the staffs for one reason or another? Is he also aware that his failure to accord sanction for the waiving of the height and age regulation implies his endorsement of the practice of Catholic nurses having to attend Protestant services with Protestant patients, that this practice is not only disagreeable to the nurses——
The Deputy may not make a speech.
——but reprehensible to both the Catholic and Protestant chaplains of these institutions and that it, I am further informed, contravenes Canon Law?
It is quite clear that Deputy Hannigan has not appreciated the terms of the reply. I have covered every point he has made in his supplementary speech.
Question.
At the time this particular piece of propaganda was launched, there were in fact no vacancies for nurses.
Vacancies have since arisen.
In the case of any vacancies that have arisen, if Protestant candidates who were reasonably qualified were available, sanction has been accorded to their employment in a temporary capacity. That policy will be continued.
The Parliamentary Secretary has been merely obstructive.