Christmas is cancelled for doctors and nurses
At full whack: Taoiseach insists high staffing levels needed over the holidays
TAOISEACH Leo Varadkar has warned all hospital workers – including consultants, nurses and back-up staff – must work “at full whack” over the Christmas and new year period to avoid the worst ever trolley crisis.
Senior doctors and nurses, particularly those in A&E departments, should not take leave in the first fortnight of the new year, he said.
“What has been happening in our health service for 10 or 15 years is that hospitals effectively closed down for seven days out of 12. We need to change that,” he said.
But last night, Beaumont Hospital A&E consultant Peadar Gilligan – who is warning hospitals will run out of beds for 1,000 patients as the trolley crisis peaks – said the Taoiseach was looking for an easy scapegoat.
“He is criticising people who provide the service rather than the real problem, which is a lack of beds,” said Dr Gilligan, who is president of the Irish Medical Organisation. “Is he suggesting there’s overcrowding because staff take leave entitlement? That is completely wrong.”
More than 500 patients languished on trolleys yesterday, while nurses plan to ballot for strikes.
Dr Gilligan added: “Doctors and nurses have families too around Christmas but they don’t do it [take time off ] at the expense of patient care.
“There are on-call rosters around the country and hospitals are still providing 24/7 cover to patients.”
However, the Taoiseach said that high levels of staffing over the Christmas break were desperately needed to confront upcoming problems in the hospital accident and emergency departments.
His comments came as the numbers on trolleys soared to 508 across the country yesterday, in an ominous signal of worsening overcrowding.
His criticisms also look set to inflame nurses who have warned they are to ballot for strike action over pay.
But Mr Varadkar – who as health minister was himself once criticised for taking an overseas break as hospitals were hit by January trolley chaos – defended the lack of a formal winter plan when questioned on the crisis facing the health service.
Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin, also a former health minister, told Mr Varadkar the winter plan to prepare for overcrowding should have been in place since July.
However, the Taoiseach claimed that for the past 10 to 15 years there had been a winter plan – and it had not worked.
“Then the last thing we need is another ‘winter plan’,” the Taoiseach told the Dáil.
Mr Varadkar said hospitals would effectively be closed for seven of the 12 days between December 22 and January 3 next. This was because these closed days fell on either a Saturday, Sunday or a bank holiday.
“What has been happening in our health service for 10 or 15 years is that hospitals effectively closed down for seven days out of 12. We need to change that,” the Taoiseach insisted.
“We need to make sure, for the first time ever, that during that period the radiology departments and labs are open and working at full whack.
“That consultants are not on holidays in the first week of the year, particularly those who work in the emergency departments, and that nurses are not on leave in the first two weeks of January.
“We need to make sure that every bed is open. That is the kind of winter plan we need – not the kind we have had for years and years that does not work,” Mr Varadkar added.
But the Fianna Fáil leader said the health services were in crisis, with large numbers of elderly people on trolleys and young children waiting for care.
He said €50m earmarked by Health Minister Simon Harris for the provision of extra hospital beds had not been spent but was re-allocated to other sectors.
Mr Martin also pointed to criticisms of the Health Minister by former HSE boss Tony O’Brien, who also warned 1,000 patients would be left on trolleys.