Ms Phil Ní Sheaghdha:

Those figures have been collated by the International Council of Nurses, which looked at the numbers of healthcare workers infected as a proportion of the overall infection rate in each country. There are some caveats attached to that, for obvious reasons. However, we are satisfied that the figures we have received from the HSE reflect the reality. For example, the most recent figures collated last Friday show that 8,347 healthcare workers have been infected with Covid-19. Of those, the highest single group is nurses, with 2,711 infections. We have experienced that on our wards, and Ms Murphy experienced it personally. There are a number of reasons for the high infection rate. One is that there was a deficit of PPE to begin with, though that has improved and is no longer the issue. The biggest single issue is fatigue and the length of exposure of healthcare workers, such as nurses and midwives, to people with the infection. The longer someone is exposed to somebody with the infection, the more likely that person is to become infected. That has been proven.

We have to look at the idea that if we open up a Covid ward with a staff of 19 nurses and 12 of them get infected, we will have no replacements. It simply does not make any sense. It is causing the infection to increase.