Ban on overtime for psychiatric nurses lifted

THE overtime ban by the country’s 7,000 psychiatric nurses was lifted last night after the provisional acceptance of a compensation package for members assaulted at work.

Mental health services had been in chaos since the overtime ban was introduced almost two weeks ago. At the height of the disruption, many units were closed down and acute facilities were barely functioning. It was sparked by protest at the Government’s proposal of, what nurses described as, a wholly insubstantial compensation scheme.

The scheme hammered out between the HSE and nursing unions SIPTU and the Psychiatric Nurses Association (PNA) at the Labour Relations Commission, extends the number of grounds for claims from 13 to 52, recognises the importance of dealing with the psychological trauma such attacks can cause and increases payments by up to 66%. Historical cases will also be covered.