Séamus Healy (Tipperary South, Independent) | Oireachtas source

It is generally accepted that serious challenges face the health services on a daily basis. These challenges affect patients, staff and the wider community. Staff are firefighting on an ongoing basis. They are burned out, frustrated and fed up continuously holding services together with minimum resources.

Emergency departments are overrun, with trolley numbers in January of this year at an all-time high of almost 14,000. Waiting lists are similarly as high, and outpatient numbers are well in excess of half a million. We have reviews and investigations into hospitals like University Hospital Limerick, Portiuncula hospital and Mayo general hospital. The Government and health service management thew a grenade into this already chaotic situation with the pay and numbers strategy. That strategy abolished more than 2,000 posts, keeping additional pressure and stress on remaining staff. These posts were fully funded and filled.

If that was not enough, on Friday last, the chief executive of the Health Service Executive, in what was an aggressive, maverick and indeed bully boy diktat, instructed his regional executive officers to introduce an extended working day and extended working week for staff. That diktat is in breach of good industrial relations practice and, more importantly, is in breach of the framework agreement between the Health Service Executive and its staff and unions. It was done without any consultation whatsoever. This bombshell was thrown into an already fraught situation and has the potential to cause serious harm, not only to staff but also to patients already waiting far too long for treatments. The Fórsa trade union, representing its members, responded predictably and reasonably when it said that if this instruction is not suspended, it will necessitate an appropriate response. This is shorthand for industrial action.

In view of the clear breach of agreements and non-consultation with staff and unions, and in view of the potential for this diktat to create chaos in the health service and, indeed, seriously impact on patient safety, will the Government instruct the chief executive officer of the Health Service Executive to withdraw that instruction immediately?

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