Léim ar aghaidh chuig an bpríomhábhar
Gnáthamharc

Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Wednesday, 18 Feb 1970

Vol. 244 No. 7

Ceisteanna — Questions. Oral Answers. - Nursing Service.

2.

Mrs. Burke

andMr. Timmins asked the Minister for Health if he will grant overall seniority to married women who return to nursing.

I assume that the question relates to the grant of incremental credit for previous experience to married nurses who accept temporary appointments in local health authority institutions.

Heretofore, a married temporary nurse was conditioned to enter the salary scale at the minimum following which she could proceed by annual increments to the maximum. However, earlier this month, following consultation between my officers and the county managers, I intimated that my sanction would be forthcoming to the grant of incremental credit to married nurses, other than psychiatric nurses on the following basis:

Credit, up to a maximum of five increments, for previous post-graduate experience in a recognised hospital, and the payment of annual increments thereafter. The concession may apply to married nurses already employed in a temporary capacity, provided that it will not place a nurse beyond the fifth incremental point. A married nurse who has received incremental credit under this arrangement and who is obliged to break her service for a short period owing to domestic reasons may be re-employed at the salary which she had immediately prior to the break in her temporary service.

The effect of this sanction, which may be implemented with effect as from 1st July, 1969, is to give married nurses in temporary employment the same incremental advantages as their permanent colleagues—with added concessions should their service be interrupted for domestic reasons.

3.

Mrs. Burke

andMr. Timmins asked the Minister for Health if he will arrange for the setting up of a proper staff structure for those who specialise in geriatric nursing.

I presume that the question relates to nurses engaged in geriatric nursing in hospitals.

I am not aware of any reasons why a separate staffing structure should be devised for geriatric nurses. If the Deputies have in mind that the numbers of posts in particular hospitals are inadequate I shall be glad to consider any proposals received from the appropriate health authorities whose responsibility it is, in the first instance, to consider whether existing arrangements are satisfactory.

Would the Minister not agree that in the matter of promotion, candidates who have overall general nursing training are more liable to get promotion than those who have concentrated on specialised geriatric nursing? Does the Minister consider that a satisfactory situation?

It is a rather complicated position and it would be difficult to describe it in detail. The usual staffing in hospitals run by religious orders is matron, assistant matron, ward sisters and staff nurses. The matrons usually are members of religious orders and until recent years there was no supervisory staff other than assistants to the matron. This position has been changing and in some county homes there are posts of ward sisters, appointed, agreed and sanctioned. It is a mixed picture. I would hope the local authorities would do their best to deal with the matter in the most appropriate way in order, where possible, to provide the kind of promotions the Deputy has in mind and at the same time to bear in mind the existing structures in the hospital.

May I ask the Minister to take a special look at this because of the great difficulty there is in finding geriatric nurses? As the Minister knows, this is a type of nursing which is unattractive in many ways and it is extremely difficult to get nurses to do it continuously. If nurses are to lose out further in the matter of promotion, surely there is something wrong in the whole structure.

The Deputy will know that in St. Kevin's and St. Mary's Dublin, and, indeed, in St. Finbarr's in Cork and the city home and hospital in Limerick the staff nurses are supervised by ward sisters and assistant matrons and that to that limited degree there are promotion opportunities. Local health authorities are now able to pay additional increments to nurses who look after a geriatric cases. That has also been agreed. I think it is £80 a year.

The difficulty is the awarding of marks in deciding promotion.

4.

asked the Minister for Health if, to enable public health nurses to get the leisure to which they are entitled, he will appoint a mobile nurse to cover several districts to enable such public health nurses to have periods off duty.

The appointment of public health nurses in a particular area is primarily a matter for the health authority concerned.

I am not aware that the appointment of substitutes is a necessary part of the local arrangements made in order that public health nurses may have reasonable off-duty hours, apart from periods of annual and other leave.

5.

asked the Minister for Health if he will consider the advisability of appointing a night sister for the larger operating centres in this country.

It is primarily a matter for individual health authorities to determine the nursing staff required for their hospitals. I am not opposed in principle to the appointment of night supervisory staff. I have already approved any proposals submitted by health authorities to create posts of night superintendent for large general hospitals.

6.

asked the Minister for Health if he is aware that tutor nurses who transfer from voluntary hospitals to local authority hospitals are placed at the bottom scale in spite of any period of seniority they may have had in the voluntary hospitals; and if he proposes to take any action to remedy the situation.

Standard practice in the local health authority service is that an officer who accepts an appointment enters the appropriate salary scale at the minimum and then proceeds by annual increments, subject, of course, to satisfactory service, to the maximum. The terms and conditions of appointment are published in advance of the competition for any particular post.

A departure from the standard practice has been authorised, in response to recruitment difficulties in certain areas, for the basic grade of staff nurse who may now enter the salary scale with the benefit of up to five increments in respect of previous experience. Since there is no recruitment problem as respects senior nursing posts a similar concession is not warranted at the present time, but I will keep the matter under review.

Barr
Roinn