HSE recruitment freeze to end in nine days

A RECRUITMENT freeze introduced by the Health Service Executive (HSE) in September in a bid to reduce its €250 million deficit will cease on New Year’s Eve.

The ending of the recruitment pause was announced at yesterday’s meeting between the HSE and health service trade unions to discuss the 2008 HSE National Service Plan.

The plan, approved earlier this month by Health Minister Mary Harney, sets out how the authority intends to spend €14 billion, part of the Government’s pre-budget outlook, which is up more than €765m or 6% on the 2007 allocation.

Additional funding voted for the HSE in the budget will be considered as an addendum to the National Service Plan.

HSE chief executive Brendan Drumm said he would be supporting ongoing improvements in patients’ experience of the health service by setting reduced waiting times for access to services as a key target for 2008.

The HSE would also be strengthening how performance was monitored and measured, he said.

Plans for next year include the establishment of the living donor programme at Beaumont Hospital in Dublin and the recruitment of medical personnel to address an anticipated 7%-plus growth in births.

The plan also envisages agreement being reached on a new consultant contract and significant progress being made on co-located private hospitals.

The HSE also intends applying different incentive systems to reward positive hospital performance. Another target for next year is that no patient will wait more than 12 hours in accident and emergency after a decision to admit is made.