Mark Daly (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I know this item will be of interest to the Leas-Chathaoirleach and to everybody in County Kerry. I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Finian McGrath, for taking the time to come to the House to give us an update on the issue of staffing levels in Kenmare Community Hospital. As the Minister of State will be aware, the hospital has been open since 2013 and, in fact, the official sod-turning by Senator Reilly, then Minister for Health, happened on 3 February 2012. Yet, despite the Government spending €8 million on this new facility, only 19 of the beds are open at this stage and 21 remain to be opened. We must bear in mind we have been waiting six years for the opening of the second floor of the hospital.

The excuse that has been given time and again in this House is the issue of recruitment. We are producing far more nurses per head of population than most European countries yet we are exporting most of them. They are being offered jobs in England, Australia and the Middle East, and they are taking up those jobs. For some reason, the offers that are being put out by the Government every year or six months are not being taken up, and that reason is that the pay and conditions are simply not good enough.

The excuse applies not only to Kenmare Community Hospital but also to Dingle Community Hospital, on which €14 million was spent and where 60 beds were provided but only 43 are open, again, due to the lack of nurses being recruited by the HSE.I hope the Minister of State does not give me the same reply I got six months ago, a year ago, two years ago, two and a half years ago or any time I have been allowed to ask this question that it is still trying to recruit. It is six years on and if it is still trying to recruit for this hospital and all the other hospitals that have vacancies, the Government obviously has not identified the true problem, which is the Government, in that it is the one that is not giving the proper terms and conditions, and that is why people are not taking up the positions in this hospital and in all the other ones. I thank the Leas-Chathaoirleach.