Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator for her question and contribution and wish her the best in her role. I will touch specifically on the planned industrial action this week. It is timely, therefore, that the Senator has asked the question. While it was directed to my colleague, the Minister for Health, Deputy Simon Harris, it falls within our collective remit. The Minister sends his apologies for being unable to be here.

As the Senator pointed out, the Minister met representatives of the Psychiatric Nurses Association earlier this month prior to the completion of the ballot on industrial action. Unfortunately, I was unable to attend, but I hope to meet them tomorrow or later this week. At the meeting representatives of the association outlined the concerns of their members about current and pending staff shortages and the need to focus on recruitment, retention and service development issues. The Senator has outlined many of these issues. Since the result of the ballot was announced there has been engagement between the HSE and the Psychiatric Nurses Association with a view to averting the industrial action which is due to commence on 29 June. Following contacts between the parties, an initial meeting took place last Friday and another is scheduled for tomorrow. Obviously, representatives of the Department of Health will attend that meeting. At last week's meeting the representatives of the association again emphasised the significant recruitment and retention challenges mental health services faced, given the age profile of psychiatric nursing staff. They also expressed concerns about the capacity of the system to implement A Vision for Change.

I emphasise that the Government is committed to providing additional resources for mental health services. As I mentioned in my previous address, this is shown clearly in the increase in funding for mental health services from €785 million to €826 million this year, an increase of 5.2%. The Government is also committed to reinstating the full 2016 provision of €35 million in new development moneys to enable service priorities in the mental health service to be progressed in line with A Vision for Change. The additional funding will enable further recruitment to priority posts throughout the mental health sector and the ongoing development of community mental health teams.

We face a genuine implementation difficulty in some areas, a point which has been acknowledged. It does not relate primarily to a lack of funding and is far more a question of sourcing staff and reconfiguring services and structures. Only this morning I spoke to officials about a particular post in respect of which there had been three recruitment drives, one of which was international. Despite this, it has been difficult to fill the post. There are, therefore, major challenges in this area. Having said that, some 1,550 new posts have been approved, of which 1,150 have been filled since 2012, but there are still have many gaps that we need to fill. The HSE is experiencing significant challenges in recruiting suitably qualified nurses in this area, with a significant gap between the number of nurses who are graduating and the positions that need to be filled. In that context, the HSE has made provision for the rehiring of retired mental health nursing staff. Some nurses have been rehired. I realise there are a number of issues about the pay scale, something the Department and the HSE are addressing with nurses. The HSE is focusing on facilitating the retention of these nurses and engaging to ensure this will happen. It is also focused on streamlining recruitment processes, increasing the number of student places available, recruiting graduating nurses and ensuring permanent contracts can be offered to all eligible psychiatric nursing staff. It is in the best interests of patients and nursing personnel that the parties engage constructively on the key issues involved in order that industrial action can be avoided at all costs.

The Senator and I share the same objective, that is, improving the delivery of services to ensure the health service delivers the services it is supposed to deliver. I am satisfied that the Psychiatric Nurses Association and the HSE are committed to continuing positive engagement and I will certainly do whatever I can to play my part in that process.