HSE rejects plea to defer Limerick cuts

THE Health Service Executive has rejected pleas from unions not to impose cost-containment measures aimed at meeting a €16 million overspend at the mid-west’s largest hospital.

According to SIPTU and the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) management at Limerick’s Mid-Western Regional Hospital have rejected a request to defer the cost-containment measures.

The measures are to be implemented from Monday.

AS part of the cuts, the HSE is to close 25 beds at the hospital, which has the highest 2011 overspend of any hospital in the country.

The HSE is to also reduce overtime and agency payments by 50%.

The HSE has confirmed that it is writing to GPs asking for their co-operation to make only appropriate referrals to the hospital’s emergency & department.

&&

INMO industrial relations officer, Noel Treanor, said in the medium term, the measures “will cause difficulty and chaos at Limerick’s A&E department”.

“It is unfair to call the €16m an overspend, because hospital management has not been given enough funding to run the hospital in the first place. We acknowledge that the budget has been imposed on hospital management.”

Unions and management met for 2½ half hours on Wednesday night.

Mr Treanor confirmed that the INMO will hold a meeting of its 500 members on Monday to discuss actions they may take. He refused to be drawn on whether this would involve industrial action.

SIPTU industrial organiser, Jim McGrath, last night blamed the staff moratorium for the high spend on agency staff and overtime.

He said that what is proposed by management “is not an adequate, safe service for the patient”.

The HSE last night declined to comment.