Written answers
Tuesday, 29 April 2008
Department of Health and Children
Health Service Staff
9:00 pm
Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 234: To ask the Minister for Health and Children the number of personnel at all levels required by the Health Service Executive to provide a comprehensive health service; the number of such posts unfilled at present; the reason for same; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [16679/08]
Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)
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The Health Service Executive National Service Plan (NSP) for 2008 has been approved by me and laid before the Oireachtas. It outlines the type and volume of health and personal services to be provided by the Executive in 2008 on the basis of the funding provided by Government. In that regard, it is a matter for the Executive to manage and deploy its human resources to best meet the requirements of the Annual Service Plan for the delivery of health and personal social services to the public.
Subject to overall parameters set by Government, the Health Service Executive has the responsibility for determining the composition of its staffing complement.
At the end of 2007, a total of 111,505 whole time equivalents were employed in the health services (110,597 adjusted for student nurses).
| Numbers employed in the Public Health Service, Dec 2007 (Quarter 4) all figures expressed as whole-time equivalents — excludes those on career break | |||||
| HSE | NHO Vol. Hosp. | Voluntary Disability (PCCC) | Other PCCC Voluntary Agencies | Total | |
| Medical/Dental | 5,104 | 2,707 | 52 | 142 | 8,005 |
| Nursing | 26,185 | 9,192 | 2,855 | 775 | 39,006 |
| Health and Social Care Professionals | 9,671 | 3,159 | 2,523 | 352 | 15,705 |
| Management /Admin | 12,835 | 3,872 | 1,002 | 334 | 18,043 |
| General Support Staff | 8,267 | 2,955 | 1,243 | 435 | 12,900 |
| Other Patient and Client Care | 11,399 | 1,269 | 4,547 | 630 | 17,846 |
| Total | 73,461 | 23,153 | 12,221 | 2,669 | 111,505 |
| Notes | |||||
| 1 Excludes Home Helps | |||||
| 2 Management/Administrative includes staff who are of direct service to the public and include Consultant's Secretaries, Out-Patient Departmental Personnel, Medical Records Personnel, Telephonists and other staff who are engaged in front-line duties together with staff in the following categories Payroll, Human Resource Management (including training), Service Managers, IT Staff, General Management Support and Legislative and Information requirements. | |||||
| 3 Agencies are classified as follows: Health Service Executive, Voluntary Hospitals (aligned to NHO), Disability Services (voluntary disability services aligned to PCCC) and Others (voluntary services other disability services than aligned to PCCC). | |||||
| 4 Student nurses are included in the 2007 employment ceiling on the basis of 3.5 students equating to 1 wholetime equivalent. The December 2007 employment level adjusted for student nurses on the above basis is 110,597 wte. |
An overall employment ceiling of 112,560 whole time equivalents has been set for the public health services for 2008 (111,650 adjusted for student nurses). This level of employment provides for 1,050 additional new posts arising from development funding provided by the Government in the Budget Day package for 2008. Following consideration of the requirements to deliver the priorities identified by Government in the Budget package, 1,050 posts have been approved for 2008. A breakdown of these development posts is provided as follows.
| Service | 2008 Development Funding | No of Development posts to be filled in 2008 |
| €m | ||
| Older People | 22.00 | 100 |
| Palliative Care | 3.00 | 50 |
| Disability | 49.96 | 710 |
| Cancer | 15.00 | 90 |
| Population Health | 17.96 | 100 |
| Total | 1,050 |
The filling of the above development posts are to be managed by the HSE within the employment control framework for the health services and its own circular issued in January 2008 which sets out revised arrangements for the filling of all posts, including development posts in 2008. The Executive is the appropriate body to consider the number of posts unfilled at present and the reason for this. My Department has requested the Parliamentary Affairs Division of the Executive to arrange to have the matter investigated and to have a reply issued to the Deputy.
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