Mr. Barry O'Brien:

It is approximately 1.2%. The level of absenteeism among nurses is 5.3%; among health and social care professionals, 4.27%; among management-administration staff, 4.75%; among general support staff, 5.52%; and among other patient and care clients, 5.44%. Equally, almost 90% of all absences are certified. There is a proactive management process in place for the management of attendance across the service. It is identified as an issue that needs constant management. We have made incremental progress and the level of absenteeism has stabilised at 4.8%. While a target of 3.5% has been set as the norm, the current absentee level compares well with other 365 day, 24-7 services, particularly in Britain and Northern Ireland. The level has reduced from a high of 7% in 2008 to 4.79% today.