Donnelly: Vaccine centres desperate for staff
RECRUITING healthcare staff for the vaccine booster rollout has been ‘more difficult’ than the first time round, the Health Minister has said.
Responding to a question by Labour TD Duncan Smith, Stephen Donnelly said the Government was ‘calling out to everyone we can’ to help administer booster jabs.
He explained: ‘We couldn’t leave very large numbers of people essentially with nothing to do. So a lot of staff were redeployed back into primary care, into acute care, some went back into retirement work – there was an amazing number of people came out of retirement – and of course students went back to college.’
He said it is ‘more difficult’ to bring people back now because ‘acutes are under an awful lot of pressure’, however he was positive about the booster programme’s progress.
‘In the last seven days, I think we’re about 210,000 [third doses and boosters] administered which is very good and obviously we’re looking to increase that all the time,’ he said.
In his address to the nation last night, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said almost 950,000 people had received a third dose or booster jab.
A further 5,419 cases of Covid-19 were reported yesterday. NPHET said 528 patients are currently in hospital with Covid – 110 of which are in ICU.
New legislation to further extend pandemic emergency powers was debated in the Dáil yesterday, with the Government moving to introduce the law before Christmas as current legislation – covering measures such as vaccine passes, mask-wearing and Garda enforcement powers – is set to expire in the new year. Mr Donnelly told the House the new law will allow for the extension of the emergency measures until March 31. Under a sunset clause in the proposed legislation, the Government would be able to extend measures one more time, for a period of three months, if both the Dáil and Seanad agreed. In a speech to the Dáil, the Health Minister said it was ‘extremely disappointing’ that Ireland was in this position and acknowledged that every member of the Oireachtas wished there was no need for the emergency legal measures. ‘The trajectory of this virus is ever-evolving and the Government needs to be able to respond in a proportionate, rapid and flexible manner to protect public health,’ he said. Mr Donnelly said the current level of the virus is placing a ‘substantial additional burden’ on non-Covid care across all parts of the health service.
‘This is likely to increase over the course of the winter period. Our response is premised on the need to preserve and protect public health by slowing the spread of the virus, reducing its impact on everyone and limiting its impact on our society and our economy,’ he said.
Ireland’s Covid situation ‘remains vulnerable to a further deterioration’ depending on a number of factors, including levels and types of social interaction, adherence to guidelines and the effect of the Omicron variant, the Health Minister told TDs.
‘We are not out of this pandemic yet, as recent events have clearly shown us. We expect the winter months ahead to be challenging, both in terms of the spread of the virus and the ongoing pressure on the health system,’ Mr Donnelly said.
‘It’s essential that the Government has the option to continue the enforcement of public health measures in the coming months.’
5,419
Number of confirmed new Covid-19 cases in Ireland yesterday