HSE 'not 100% confident' it will have enough staff to cope with winter demand

HSE chief operations officer Anne O'Connor conceded she could not guarantee that ambitious recruitment targets will be met, saying: 'I can't be 100% confident, that's the reality'. Picture: Leon Farrell / Photocall 

The health service has launched an “ambitious” €600m plan to overcome additional challenges this winter, but has conceded that it is ‘not 100% confident’ that it will be able to recruit the 12,500 staff required to deliver services between October and April.

As the health service faces a range of additional challenges this winter due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the HSE has committed to spending €200m to bolster services for the rest of this year, and a further €400m between January and April next year.