Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

It has been reported HSE board members were told the health service needs to recruit nearly 12,000 full-time staff this year but expects to recruit only half that number. Government research tells us job-stay rates are greater in the public and Civil Service when compared with the private sector, yet one in ten staff left the HSE last year to retire or emigrate, and the job churn continues to increase. Despite this, it is only now that senior managers are considering the introduction of exit surveys to understand that phenomenon. As the Taoiseach knows, mental health disability service managers across the community healthcare organisation, CHO, areas openly tell us they do not have the staff needed, which leaves teams operating at partial capacity and people without services. Staff shortages in the health service extend to GP practice nurses, healthcare assistants, consultants, health and social care workers and all the professions. The evidence is that all Government parties have failed over the past 20 years to develop a workforce plan to train, recruit and retain enough healthcare workers to staff the health service safely. In the absence of this staff, the Government can make whatever announcements it wants or set out whatever plans it has, but it has no ability to deliver them. Where is the Government's comprehensive ten-year workforce planning strategy for the health system? Is the Taoiseach taking an active role in ensuring such a strategy is devised and delivered?

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