Nurses suspend A&E walk-outs

NURSES have suspended walk-outs which they have staged over conditions at the & Emergency Department (ED) of the Mid-West Regional Hospital.

The decision was taken after talks between the HSE, SIPTU and the INMO under the auspices of the Labour Relations Commission on Tuesday.

Nurses have staged four-hour stoppages, which HSE management said were a matter of great concern given the work of the ED&.

Last week, the nurses went to Dublin where they handed in letters to the Dáil and the Department of Health.

Over the next four weeks a full review of rosters and resources will be conducted.

SIPTU representative Jim McGrath said they were seeking the recruitment of an additional 20 nurses to cater for the extra workload at the ED& since the closure of emergency departments at Nenagh and Ennis under a new health services configuration plan which started two years ago.

Over the coming four weeks it is believed management have agreed to deploy extra resources at the ED. However, it is believed this will not involve the recruitment of more nurses. Management have also said they will reduce the number of ED trolleys now being placed in inpatient wards.