HSE board had not signed off on winter plan

The winter plan commits to hiring the equivalent of 51 emergency medicine consultants, starting with locum doctors.

The HSE's board had not seen the organisation's €169m winter plan before it was published, and expressed concerns about commitments made in it at a board meeting two weeks after publication.

The revelations are contained in minutes of the board's meeting of October 26, two weeks after the plan was published.

The minutes show “the board discussed the winter plan in particular areas such as recruitment of [emergency department] consultants and the five fundamentals outlined in the plan”.

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“Concern was expressed at commitments entered into in a number of aspects of the plan.” 

The winter plan commits to hiring the equivalent of 51 emergency medicine consultants, starting with locum doctors “to ensure full impact over the winter period”.

Board members asked HSE officials why this document was not sent up the line for consideration and approval as should have been done due to their governance responsibilities. The executive management team committed to reviewing the process to ensure this does not happen again.

Sinn Féin health spokesman David Cullinane described the oversight as “troubling”.

Sinn Féin spokesperson on health David Cullinane TD said the oversight 'shows a dysfunction'. Picture: Gareth Chaney/Collins Photos

“This shows a dysfunction that the board weren’t notified, and that is unusual and troubling,” he said.

He added: “I can’t speak for the board, but they’re obviously expressing a frustration, and they’re acknowledging there are recruitment challenges and that any winter plan worth its salt has to be deliverable.” 

Fine Gael health spokesman Colm Burke said: “There is a need for a team effort and that before a plan is published the people who have to implement the plan should be fully aware of the full contents before it is made available to the general public.” 

He said the situation is unusual, saying “the board has the overall say and overall responsibility for implementing the plan”.

The board also heard in general of “significant challenges” in hiring staff and retaining staff. This was particularly discussed in light of challenges for the disability services.

Details were provided to the board of the project to transfer HSE banking services from Ulster Bank, which is leaving the Irish market by March 2023, to Danske Bank. The minutes show approval of the first wave of account transfers.