Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Sinn Fein)
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Question 44: To ask the Minister for Health if there are contingency plans to address the staffing arising from mass retirements in each of the Health Service Executive regions and hospital groups; if he will outline these plans by region and hospital group; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8322/12]

James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)
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The cumulative impact of staff reductions, and particularly those occurring before the end of the present "Grace Period", together with reduced financial resources, represents a significant challenge for the health system in delivering services in 2012. The HSE's National Service Plan, which I approved on 16 January, sets out the actions to be taken to address these challenges. The priority is to reform how health services are delivered in order to ensure a more productive and cost-effective health system.

The most recent information available from the HSE indicates that some 2,000 staff will retire from the health service during the month of February 2012. It should be noted that this figure is liable to change as data is refined, as additional applications are processed and if existing applications are withdrawn. However management at local and regional level have a clear picture of which staff are leaving or have already retired and are fully focused on addressing all critical service issues.

The HSE is currently finalising detailed regional contingency plans, whose focus is on maintaining essential frontline services such as emergency departments, intensive care and maternity services as well as addressing the service areas identified for priority development under the National Service Plan. The plans reflect the fact that the number of staff leaving varies from region to region and from service to service. These have been the subject of a series of discussions with my Department in recent weeks. Briefings with staff, unions, public representatives and other stakeholders have already commenced and will continue over the coming weeks.

The contingency plans make use of measures under the Public Service Agreement to achieve increased flexibility in relation to work practices and rosters, redeployment and other changes to achieve more efficient delivery of services. Some management structures and services will be amalgamated and streamlined. Cross-cover arrangements will be put in place wherever possible and where clinical management numbers have been reduced. Other measures will involve the filling of some key vacancies as part of a targeted investment and recruitment response. The HSE will also work to mitigate the impact of the staffing reductions through the accelerated implementation of the National Clinical Programmes as part of the Government's reform agenda. This will involve measures such as reductions in average length of stay, improving day-of-surgery admission rates and increasing the proportion of hospital care provided on a day case basis.

In addition to these measures, the Government recently announced the establishment of transition teams in key sectors to oversee the response to the specific short-term impact of Grace Period retirements. In this context I have established a formal Transition Team for the health sector, chaired by an Assistant Secretary in my Department and including key HSE Directors at national and regional level.

The national, regional and site-specific contingency planning process will continue up to and beyond 29 February. This is a dynamic process and the objective is to ensure that there are measures in place to address all critical issues. The Executive will be arranging, in the normal way, to publish regional service plans as these are finalised.