Tag Archives: nurses

Nurses To Go On 24 Hour Strike At The End Of The Month

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NURSES and midwives will go on strike for 24 hours on January 30th, it was announced today .

The union is legally required to give one week’s notice, but has given three to allow for safety planning. Should the dispute go unresolved, there will be further 24-hour strikes on 5th and 7th of February, and then the 12th, 13th and 14th.

The strike will see INMO members withdraw their labour for 24 hours, providing only lifesaving care and emergency response teams.

The dispute centres on safe staffing in the public health service. The HSE has not been able to recruit and retain enough nurses and midwives on current wages.

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The number of staff nurses fell by 1,754 (6%) between 2008 and 2018, despite an ageing, growing population making the health service busier.

This would be only the second national strike in the INMO’s hundred-year history.

INMO General Secretary Phil Ní Sheaghdha said: “Going on strike is the last thing a nurse or midwife wants to do. But the crisis in recruitment and retention has made it impossible for us to do our jobs properly. We are not able give patients the care they deserve under these conditions.

“The HSE simply cannot recruit enough nurses and midwives on these wages. Until that changes, the health service will continue to go understaffed and patient care will be compromised.

“The ball is in the government’s court. This strike can be averted. All it takes is for the government to acknowledge our concerns, engage with us directly, and work to resolve this issue, in a pro-active manner.

“We were due to meet with the government in the national oversight body in December, but the meeting was cancelled. Like many patients in Ireland’s health service, we are still waiting for an appointment.”

PHOTOS: Students Have A Ball To Celebrate Graduation From IT Tralee

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Barry O’Mahony, Geraldine McCarthy, Emma O’Sullivan and Frederic Visocchi at the Class of 2017 IT Tralee Mental Health and General Nursing Graduates Ball at The Rose Hotel on Saturday night. Photo by Dermot Crean

THEY’VE been working hard for the past four years so they deserved a great night out.

The IT Tralee Mental Health and General Nursing Class of 2017 decided to have one last get together at their graduation ball on Saturday night in The Rose Hotel, where 95 people enjoyed glass of bubbly on arrival, a wonderful meal and music by Flog The Dog.

“We’re all going our separate ways now so the idea was to have one last hurrah I suppose,” said one of the organisers, Anne Marie Bright.

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“The conferring ceremony on Friday was quite formal so this is a more relaxed affair. We have a little awards ceremony — some serious, some jokey — but it’s just to let the hair down and celebrate the past four years,” said Anne Marie.

After four years together, it was no doubt an emotional end to their time together and one they’ll never forget. Scroll down for photos…

Rose Concannon, Eve Spillane and Dianne O’Connor at the Class of 2017 IT Tralee Mental Health and General Nursing Graduates Ball at The Rose Hotel on Saturday night. Photo by Dermot Crean
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Mairead Brennan, Caroline Shanahan and Sinead O’Brien at the Class of 2017 IT Tralee Mental Health and General Nursing Graduates Ball at The Rose Hotel on Saturday night. Photo by Dermot Crean
Elaine Doody and Mike Hanifin at the Class of 2017 IT Tralee Mental Health and General Nursing Graduates Ball at The Rose Hotel on Saturday night. Photo by Dermot Crean
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Shauna Enright, Mark Bright and Anne Marie Bright at the Class of 2017 IT Tralee Mental Health and General Nursing Graduates Ball at The Rose Hotel on Saturday night. Photo by Dermot Crean
Suzanne Barron and Rachel McElligott at the Class of 2017 IT Tralee Mental Health and General Nursing Graduates Ball at The Rose Hotel on Saturday night. Photo by Dermot Crean
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Seamus Keane and Joanna Carmody at the Class of 2017 IT Tralee Mental Health and General Nursing Graduates Ball at The Rose Hotel on Saturday night. Photo by Dermot Crean
David O’Sullivan and Clara O’Shea at the Class of 2017 IT Tralee Mental Health and General Nursing Graduates Ball at The Rose Hotel on Saturday night. Photo by Dermot Crean
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Jared Counihan and Alana Poff at the Class of 2017 IT Tralee Mental Health and General Nursing Graduates Ball at The Rose Hotel on Saturday night. Photo by Dermot Crean

KGH Nursing Staff Shortage At Crisis Point Says INMO

rsz_inmo_logoTHE shortage of nurses within Kerry General Hospital has reached crisis point according to the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation.

The INMO is  now calling for an immediate recruitment of staff specific to KGH to address this crisis.

“The situation that currently exists within Kerry General Hospital is unsafe and untenable,” said Michael Dineen, INMO Industrial Relations Officer on Tuesday.

“Our members are challenged, on a daily basis, to deliver safe and effective care to the patients in their charge,” he said

“The INMO is now calling for an immediate recruitment initiative specific to Kerry General Hospital to address this crisis,” said Mr Dineen.

The INMO said the current situation is caused by the following factors:

• The on-going recruitment moratorium within the HSE

• The fact that the hospital is continuously in escalation since January. This means that 10 additional beds are opened within the hospital without sufficient additional staff being made available. As a result, staff are being redeployed within the hospital which further reduces the staffing numbers in the wards from which they are reassigned

• The failure of the HSE to provide the agreed nursing complement to enable its own service plan to be delivered. It was agreed locally that 420 nurses would be required to deliver this service in 2014, yet there are only 402 whole-time equivalents (WTEs) in the system

• The situation is further compounded by the unwillingness of the HSE to replace staff who are retiring.

 

 

Whipps Cross Girls Reunite In Tralee After 42 Years

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THE Meadowlands Hotel reverberated with laughter on Friday night when 19 ladies who trained as nurses in a London hospital reunited after 42 years.

“In 1972 there was about 70 people who started training to be nurses in Whipps Cross Hospital and about 40 of them were from Ireland,” said Maria Hickey from O’Rahilly’s Villas, who trained in Whipps Cross.

“It’s 42 years later so we decided to have a reunion. There’s 19 of us here tonight, with four from Tralee, all celebrating our youth.  It was quite emotional meeting again tonight. We did have fun and we all looked after each other as we didn’t know anything about London when we went over there,” said Maria.

There were four Tralee ladies in the group 42 years ago – Maria Hickey, Noreen Leahy, Aileen Shanahan and Eileen Curtin – who enjoyed catching up with their old friends.

“I’ve great memories and they’re all mad,” said Aileen Shanahan from The Spa. “It was daunting going over to London but I suppose we had to because money was scarce at the time, but I’ve great memories,” said Aileen.

The ladies went to Brandon and the Maherees on Friday and they planned on going to Killarney on Saturday, taking in Aghadoe Heights, Ross Castle and Muckross, followed by a trip to Tralee Golf Club for a drink and then for a meal in Spa Seafoods.  No doubt they’ll be more laughter and stories told along the way.

At the Whipps Cross Nurses reunion in the Meadowlands Hotel on Friday night were, seated from left; Liz McTiernan,Aileen Shanahan, Mary Jeffers, Eileen Curtin, Anne Clancy and Mary McLoughlin. Back from left; Christine Holman, Carmel O'Flaherty, Claire Felle, Debbie Colley, Noreen Leahy, Michelle Vale, Sylvia fallon, Maria Hickey and Margaret Cotter. Photo by Dermot Crean
At the Whipps Cross Nurses reunion in the Meadowlands Hotel on Friday night were, seated from left; Liz McTiernan,Aileen Shanahan, Mary Jeffers, Eileen Curtin, Anne Clancy and Mary McLoughlin. Back from left; Christine Holman, Carmel O’Flaherty, Claire Felle, Debbie Colley, Noreen Leahy, Michelle Vale, Sylvia fallon, Maria Hickey and Margaret Cotter. Photo by Dermot Crean
The Kerry nurses who attended the Whipps Cross Nurses training college back in 1972 who reunited in the Meadowlands Hotel on Friday night. Seated from left; Maria Hickey, Aileen Shanahan, Noreen Leahy, Eileen Curtin, Carmel O'Flaherty and Margaret Cotter. Photo by Dermot Crean
The Kerry ladies who attended the Whipps Cross Hospital to train as  nurses back in 1972 who reunited in the Meadowlands Hotel on Friday night. Seated from left; Maria Hickey, Aileen Shanahan, Noreen Leahy, Eileen Curtin, Carmel O’Flaherty and Margaret Cotter. Photo by Dermot Crean
The London based nurses who attended the Whipps Cross Nurses training college at the reunion in the Meadowlands Hotel on Friday night. From left; Debbie Colley,  Christine Holman, Carmel O'Flaherty, Claire Felle, Mary Jeffers and Michelle Vale. Photo by Dermot Crean
The London based ladies who attended the Whipps Cross Hospital to train as nurses in 1972 at the reunion in the Meadowlands Hotel on Friday night. From left; Debbie Colley, Christine Holman, Carmel O’Flaherty, Claire Felle, Mary Jeffers and Michelle Vale. Photo by Dermot Crean