Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 19 October 2021
104. Deputy Duncan Smith asked the Minister for Health if a commitment can be given that student radiographers will be paid standard HSE allowances for attending clinical placements in public hospitals similarly to other student grades within the health service; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [50822/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraThere are only a small number of healthcare courses where the students receive allowances to support clinical placements during training. These allowances have been in place for a number of years and based on specific requirements of the individual training program. Radiography students similar to many other healthcare students do not receive an allowance to support time spent on clinical placements as part of their training.
Across the health and social care disciplines, there are approximately 7,330 Health and Social Care Professional students in training who will, at different stages, require clinical placement in hospital and healthcare settings. The length of placements and the activities performed during these placements varies between disciplines. Students are not employees and in many cases the nature of the placement can, in the main, be limited to participation in an observing and a learning capacity. This is a key part of the learning in all undergraduate programs.
Student Nurses and Midwives are an example of undergraduate students that do get support in the form of allowances associated with some clinical placements. The clinical hours component of undergraduate training for nurses and midwives is almost 50% of the course. Student nurses and midwives must undertake placements across a wide variety of care areas to fulfil course requirements and often these placements are away from the base hospital setting. In these instances, travel to, and alternative and additional accommodation to normal place of residence is sometimes required for a number of weeks. This is supported by an allowance towards the cost of additional accommodation. This is a vouched system of support in place since 2004 and only applicable for some clinical placements.
