Vol. 540 No. 1
290 Mr. J. Bruton asked the Minister for Health and Children the reason he has refused to respond to representations made to him on behalf of a person (details supplied) in County Meath; if he will now respond in detail to the representation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20053/01]
At the outset let me state that the Deputy's correspondence of 28 November 2000 does not appear to have been received in my Department.
I would, however, like to take this opportunity to clarify the position in relation to state enrolled nurses. As the Deputy will be aware the state enrolled nurse (SEN) qualification is a United Kingdom qualification which is not recognised here. Persons who have obtained that qualification must undertake a nursing conversion programme in the United Kingdom in order to qualify for registration as a nurse.
In response to the important contribution by SENs working in the Irish health service to patient care across a range of settings, I recently announced details of a new initiative to assist SENs to become registered nurses. Under this initiative, any SEN working in the Irish health service wishing to undertake a nursing conversion programme in the United Kingdom will now qualify for a non-means tested grant of £6,000. The grant will be paid in return for a commitment on the part of the SEN to work as a nurse in the Irish health service following completion of the programme and registration with An Bord Altranais. SENs who successfully complete a nursing conversion programme which commenced not earlier than January 2000 will also qualify for the grant of £6,000.
I wish to confirm that the individual named in the Deputy's correspondence is one of a group of 33 SENs who have successfully completed the nursing conversion programme. Her application for a once-off grant was approved and she received a letter from my Department to this effect. The funding for these individuals was channelled through the Midland Health Board. The board confirmed on 3 May that all the payments to this group had been made.
