Mr. Liam Woods:

One of the points that came up regarding agency staff has been mentioned on a number of occasions. If one looks at the two hospitals that are referred to in the reports, one will see that their actual staff numbers are growing slightly. The hospitals in question are under a financial requirement to reduce their agency costs. While there is staff growth, the underlying number of hours may or may not be changing, depending on what is happening and on the actual agency spend. It is correct to say that increases in the pressure on and demand for the service are leading to staff pressures. There is another thing to watch when talking about midwives and midwife numbers at Cork University Hospital. It is important to understand that midwives do things that are not necessarily obstetrics. When we count these numbers, one of the challenges we face is to be clear about what midwives are actually doing. If we do not count appropriately, we could get a false base. I take the Chairman's point. The number of midwives in Cork is actually pretty good, based on national comparison. They would stand up pretty well in birth rate plus analysis.