I have had inquiries made of the hospital authorities in this matter and I have been advised that in common with other Dublin hospitals Beaumont Hospital is experiencing a general nursing shortage at present. This has affected the level of nurse staffing in the operating theatres where currently there are 16 vacant posts. As a consequence of the shortage of nurses in theatre, there are fewer nurses available for deployment to specialist areas such as neurosurgery. However, the hospital's management has pointed out that no specialist nurses have been moved from the neurosurgical theatres to work in any other areas.
I have been informed that because of the nursing situation, it has been necessary to close one theatre in the hospital until the end of this year. However, I understand that the hospital's management has endeavoured to minimise disruption to patients and the hospital's chief executive officer has stated that it is the hospital's intention to ensure that patients who cannot be treated elsewhere and who require urgent surgery are not in any circumstances disenfranchised. He has also indicated that the situation is being kept under constant review.
The Deputy will wish to know that in response to current difficulties, the Health Service Employers Agency, HSEA has established a task group to examine the full nature and extent of the difficulties in recruiting nursing staff and to make recommendations on appropriate action. While the task group has not yet completed its work, the HSEA has indicated to my Department that while a shortage of nurses exists it is not evenly distributed. For instance, while there is not a nationwide shortage of nurses, nevertheless there is difficulty in recruiting specialist nurses required in ICU theatre, etc. in many hospitals. According to the HSEA task group, there is, however, a general shortage of nurses in acute hospitals in the Dublin area, which are currently carrying some 450 vacancies. There is also a difficulty in the recruitment of psychiatric nurses in the eastern and southern regions.
The task group has identified a number of contributory factors and my Department is currently considering a number of specific short-term initiatives which have been put forward by the HSEA to address the shortage. It is hoped to outline details of these initiatives to the nursing unions shortly.
