Public health nurses call for end to recruitment ban

OVERSTRETCHED public health nurses drafted in to deliver the swine flu vaccine have called for an end to the ban on staff recruitment before the national roll-out of the cervical cancer vaccine (HPV).

Speaking at the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) annual delegate conference in Co Meath yesterday, public health nurse Eilish Fitzgerald said they were already on the back foot in the delivery of the primary school vaccination programme because of swine flu commitments and an outbreak of mumps last year.

Taking on the additional task of delivering the HPV vaccine would require extra staff to assist public health nurses who are also responsible for screening vision and hearing in children.

“As it is, audiology is behind by about 12 months in Cork South Lee area,” Ms Fitzgerald said.

Anne O’Neill, a public health nurse in Dublin South West where the number of public health nurses has fallen from eight to 2.5, said no child developmental clinics had been held in her area for the past six months. Instead, parents were forced to bring their child to the GP if they had developmental concerns. She said one 18-month-old baby had never been assessed.

“Now we are expected to administer the HPV vaccine, how are we going to do it?”

Health Minister Mary Harney said she acknowledged there were “genuine [staff] shortages” but that the solution, generally, was to move people from “a hospital-based system into the community to assist public health nurses”.

Yesterday the HSE announced it intends to begin HPV vaccinations in 21 second-level schools during the week of May 17 and that parents will receive a detailed information pack and consent form next week.

However, Ms Fitzgerald said the decision to start roll-out prior to the summer holidays was a political one and the HSE had not listened to those who administer vaccines and who believed starting the roll-out in the new school year more appropriate. She said it made little sense as the delivery schedule means the second dose of the vaccine would have to be administered during the school holidays.

Ms Fitzgerald said the HSE had provided some funding totalling 3,000 nursing hours to facilitate the roll-out in the 21-school pilot-stage phase of the project, but nothing beyond that.

She said there were talks of buying in agency staff for the full national roll-out.

During 2010, all girls who are now in 1st-year and all girls starting 1st-year in September will be offered the HPV vaccine.

Each year in Ireland, about 250 women get cervical cancer, and 80 women die from it. Cervical cancer is caused by HPV which stands for human papillomavirus – a group of over 100 viruses.

- More information on the HPV vaccine programme is available from a dedicated HSE website www.hpv.ie