Shortage of nurses forces psychiatric day care centre to close

A DAY care centre in Limerick which caters for 18 psychiatric patients has been closed for the past week due to a shortage of nurses.

Two unions, the Psychiatric Nurses Association (PNA) and SIPTU, say staffing shortages have resulted in a crisis in Limerick’s psychiatric services.

Up to 70 nurses, it was claimed, left the service over the past three years and have not been replaced due to a moratorium on recruitment.

The centre which has been closed is located at Gerald Griffin House and caters for patients with many psychiatric conditions including bipolar, depression and anxiety.

The PNA’s Liam McNamara said the situation had arisen because the centre had “run out of nurses”.

He said: “There are plenty of UL graduate nurses ready to work. There are 25 nurses ready to start work but the HSE won’t even employ them on fixed-term contracts for 30 days.”

Clients who had been attending Gerald Griffin House have been given new appointments at another centre in the city, the PNA said.

Jim McGrath of the PNA said the transfer of patients to a new centre was not fair on them.

“It has really put out the people who have been using Gerald Griffin House, as many have been using it for the past 30 years,” he said.

“It’s not the first time we have faced something like this as only last December they had to close the female ward in St Joseph’s (psychiatric hospital) because of a shortage of nurses.”

While the PNA is not planning industrial action, they say some members may refuse to work in centres if they feel it is not safe for them to do so.

Mr McGrath added: “We are monitoring the situation and we are in close contact with management on finding a solution.

“We have been told we are getting five temporary posts, but that may have been given as an opening position by the HSE and has not been signed off on. But we would need between six and eight more posts to give an adequate level of service.”