Call for recruitment of public health nurses to be 'top priority' as babies miss developmental checks

Report shows that in May 2026, 140 babies missed their developmental checks in the South-West region alone, of which 34 missed their initial 72-hour check due to staff shortages or non-attendance. File picture

The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) has called on the HSE and the Department of Health to fast-track recruitment of public health nurses, as almost 8,000 babies missed their 12-month developmental checks across Ireland last year.

This follows the publication of the Ombudsman for Children's Office (OCO) 'Milestones Missed' report, which found staff recruitment and retention issues across the healthcare system posed a "serious national challenge".

The report was generated after the OCO investigated the HSE's system for developmental checks under the State’s Child Health Programme.

According to the report, 7,700 babies across Ireland missed their 12-month developmental check in 2025 due to a lack of public health nurses.

Highlighting "blackspots" in the system, the report showed that in May 2026, 140 babies missed their developmental checks in the South-West region alone, of which 34 missed their initial 72-hour check due to staff shortages or non-attendance.

This figure fell to 12 babies missing their three-month check, before rising to 27 missing their 9-11-month check, 30 missing their 21-24 month check, and 37 missing their 46-48 month check.

The HSE said there were 1,540 public health nurses working nationally in February 2026, and it had sought funding for a further 20 posts and 15 Registered General Nursing (RGN) posts throughout this year.

However, despite additional funding, the OCO said there was "limited evidence that frontline PHN staffing capacity increased, and it remains unclear whether the additional PHN and RGN posts sought for 2026 were recruited and filled".

INMO general secretary Phil Ní Sheaghdha said: “Recruitment [of public health nurses] must become a top priority in this sector of nursing, with increased training places, increased supports for students in the sector, and focus on funded capacity."

The OCO has made four recommendations to the HSE following the report, all of which centre around the strengthening of public health nurse roles, and the provision of vital developmental checks within a reasonable timeframe.

They include the creation of a national ‘"missed contact" pathway, with a built-in escalation process to identify children who have consistently missed developmental checks.