Anne Rabbitte (Galway East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator for raising this important matter. It is important for me to say I have been given my script by the Department of Health on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Donnelly, who apologises for not being able to be here.

The Government is hugely committed to supporting the nursing and midwifery workforce and has provided for an unprecedented level of investment throughout its term, which has enabled the delivery of a record expansion of the HSE workforce. Growth in the number of staff in our health service has never been so high, with recruitment in 2023 being the highest since the foundation of the HSE. As of August 2024, there were 27,901 more staff working in the HSE than there were at the beginning of 2020, an increase of 23%. This expansion includes 9,375 additional nurses and midwives. There is now a total of 47,584 nurses working in our public health service. The Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland, NMBI, reports that there are more nurses and midwives on the register than ever before, an increase of 4% on the previous year. In fact, OECD data show that Ireland has more practising nurses per 1,000 population than nearly all other countries in Europe, second only to Finland.

In terms of supply, we have increased the number of undergraduate nursing and midwifery places by 32% since 2019, with plans to increase places further to support workforce sustainability in line with our projections. While it is the case that there was a recruitment pause for a number of months, it was a necessary step in ensuring appropriate control measures were in place, due to recruitment that had exceeded what was budgeted for. Throughout the pause, derogations were in place that allowed for continued recruitment in the nursing workforce in key areas. The pause ended this summer after the Minister for Health reached an historic agreement with the Minister for public expenditure, which delivered an unprecedented €1.5 billion additional funding for the HSE in 2024, part of which allowed for the funding and regularisation of the previously unfunded roles recruited in excess of budget 2023, and those recruited during Covid, equating to 4,000 jobs. In addition, the Minister for Health secured funding for the recruitment of an additional 4,210 staff for the HSE in 2024, which includes another significant expansion of the nursing workforce.

The INMO claims there are nursing shortages. However, the Government has provided €56 million to implement the framework for safe nurse staffing and skill mix in our acute hospitals based on patient requirements. The framework details optimal nurse numbers that apply in medical and surgical wards, as well as emergency departments. More than 1,500 additional nurses have been hired to support the framework and an additional 500 hires are in train for 2024. Once these 500 staff members are in place, the estimated baseline numbers will be reached. While the Department fully accepts there are areas where more staff may be required, the mechanisms exist whereby this need can be met. The Government has consistently evidenced its commitment to supporting nurses and midwives. It has presided over the largest increase in workforce in the history of our health service and has invested record sums in its development.