On Call for Ireland: Almost 1,000 nurses rejoin medical register

Almost 1,000 nurses have rejoined the medical register since the Covid-19 pandemic began.

Just under half of eligible student nurses have also made themselves available to work.

The figures since mid-March show that 1,399 people have rejoined the medical register here.

The largest proportion is in nursing and midwifery with 346 signing back onto the Medical Council, which includes Taoiseach Leo Varadkar.

48% of student nurses who were eligible have signed a contract with the HSE to be Healthcare Assistants.

The sign-ups are part of the On Call for Ireland initiative which more than 70,000 people applied for as part of the Government's response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Health Minister Simon Harris has said "we will be forever indebted" to those who have signed up, saying "we need every hand on deck".

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