St Vincent chiefs to discuss top-ups
Among the issues to be discussed will be the possibility of the hospital CEO’s salary being reduced or only coming from private funds.
The hospital’s hierarchy organised the meeting after representatives met with senior HSE officials over the crisis — which has spread from the Central Remedial Clinic to a host of other facilities — yesterday.
Yesterday’s high-level meeting was ordered by HSE director general Tony O’Brien after St Vincent’s admitted it paid seven senior officials top-up salaries.
The scandal, which the facility repeatedly failed to clarify to the Dáil’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) for a week before revealing the situation, includes the fact that St Vincent’s chief executive Nicky Jermyn has doubled his official salary to almost €300,000.
Of the other officials involved, the hospital’s finance director, Cormac Maloney, earns €140,876, including a €32,544 top-up, and its director of nursing, Mary Duff, earns €96,405, including a €14,853 top-up.
The hospital has insisted it is technically in line with public service rules, as the extra payments come from private and not charitable sources; are tax compliant; and are due to what it describes as a unique legal situation as officials run public and private facilities.
However, the HSE says the payments are in breach of public pay policy — which could result in the hospital’s public income being slashed if nothing is done to address concerns.
In addition, patients have hit out at the hierarchy’s decision to pay themselves huge extra sums at a time when service budgets are severely overstretched.
The criticism continued yesterday after one patient took to Twitter to post a picture of his hospital meal, including some bread, a small salad, tea, and a biscuit, adding: “Well done St Vincent’s Hospital, Dublin, €292,000 for your CEO and this food for your patients. Disgraceful.”
Well done St Vincent's hospital Dublin €292,000 for your CEO & this food for your patients. DISGRACEFUL pic.twitter.com/5pdFhv4M4u
— Senator G Craughwell (@GCraughwell) January 9, 2014
In a statement after yesterday’s meeting, a HSE spokesman said “detailed and comprehensive” discussions took place, adding St Vincent’s “will revert to the HSE following a further meeting of its board”.
Hospital officials are to be grilled by the PAC over the issue next Thursday.
The PAC chairman, Fianna Fáil TD John McGuinness, was extremely critical of the facility before Christmas over its lack of transparency on how much it is paying senior officials in top-up fees, where exactly this money comes from, and how those involved can claim the funds when services are suffering from falling budgets.
