Agency staff to cost €6m this year
In the first nine months of 2018, €4.8 million was spent on agency staff at Sligo University Hospital, a figure which is projected to hit over €6 million by the end of the year.
Sinn Féin General Election candidate Councillor Chris MacManus has accused the government and the HSE of wasting huge sums of public money on the use of temporary agency staff at the hospital because they cannot resolve the recruitment and retention crisis.
Councillor MacManus said: “Figures released by the HSE to my colleague, Deputy Louise O’Reilly have shown that so far this year the HSE has spent over €4.8 million in Sligo University Hospital on costly agency and locum doctors, nurses, and other staff in order to fill posts left vacant due to the recruitment and retention crisis.
“Contrast that to 2012, when at the height of the austerity crisis, less than a million euros was spent on similar needs.
“The overreliance on the use of costly and more expensive agency staff is a direct result of the recruitment and retention crisis and has escalated under this government with the total amount spent on agency staff in hospitals across the state has doubled since 2011.
“Over €114 million has been spent by the HSE in agency staff so far this year.
“This is a huge amount of money and it is not being spent effectively because temporary agency staff are way more expensive than directly employed staff.
“Further, the nursing crisis which the government refuse to address is having a huge impact in our hospitals and it is no different here in Sligo.
“To overcome the crisis SUH is forced to fill vacant posts with temporary, costly agency staff – this year alone nearly half a million euros has been spent on agency nurses.
“However, the reason hospitals have to rely on this staffing mechanism to fill vacant posts is because the HSE and the government have failed to address the recruitment and retention crisis.
“Health service staff and their unions have consistently reported working conditions, facilities, supports, training opportunities and pay as the cause of the recruitment and retention crisis, and until these issues are addressed the crisis will continue and these staggering sums of money will be spent on agency staff at Sligo University Hospital and across the State,” said Cllr MacManus pictured (left).