asked the Minister for Health if he will issue directions to the local authorities prohibiting them from employing married women as nurses in their hospitals while fully trained unmarried nurses are available.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Married Nurses in Local Authority Hospitals.
11.
The selection and appointment of nurses for local authority hospitals is a matter for the health authorities concerned. Provided the person to be appointed possesses the prescribed qualifications, the specific sanction of the Minister is not required.
The prescribed qualifications for the office of nurse in the local authority service provide that any women holding such office must be either unmarried or a widow, save that married women serving in a permanent capacity before the present policy was implemented are excepted.
The Deputy will, however, appreciate that it is not always possible to secure the services of an unmarried nurse, e.g. for short-term, casual employment during the absence of a permanent nurse on sick leave, and in such circumstances the local authority has no option but to take on a married nurse in a temporary capacity.