HSE spent €161.1m on agency staff last year
The amount of money spent on agency staff in acute public hospitals increased by over €9m last year.
University Hospital Limerick had by far the biggest spend in 2019.
According to details released under the Freedom of Information Act, more than €161.1m was spent on agency staff in the HSE’s acute hospitals last year.
It’s a 6% increase on the €151.8m spent in 2018.
Medical and dental staff accounted for nearly €67m of last year’s total, while nurses made up almost €31mn and €11.5m was spent on paramedics.
A total of €16.1m was spent on agency staff at University Hospital Limerick, while nearly €11m was spent in both Naas and Portlaoise hospitals.
The agency bill for Mullingar hospital came to nearly €10m.
The HSE says 94% of its pay budget each year is spent on directly employed staff, and reducing agency and overtime costs continues to be a particular focus.
