Cork ICU nurse: It’s a very stressful, sad place to work at times

CUH nurse calls for better supports for nurses working in ICU units

Ester Fitzgerald: 'Constantly, the HSE asks us to do more, and nurses, by our nature, we don’t say no. There’s only so long you can keep doing that.'

About one in 10 nurses new to intensive care units switch to other roles because of the pressures.

A senior Cork nurse has called for better workplace supports. Ester Fitzgerald, 1st vice-president of the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation, is a senior intensive care unit (ICU) nurse working at Cork University Hospital (CUH)

She welcomes investment in ICUs generally since the pandemic, saying at CUH, bed numbers have risen from about 10 to about 23 now.

However, she said: “What comes with that is an increase in the number of patients, and you increase the number of staff who need training and support. Constantly, the HSE asks us to do more, and nurses, by our nature, we don’t say no. There’s only so long you can keep doing that.” 

Many hospitals now see these highly-trained staff leave ICUs, she explained. 

“I think I am one of the few people who will spend their entire career in the likes of an acute ICU setting,” she said.

People come and do their few years, and they move on to do something else. It’s a very stressful, sad place to work at times, although very rewarding too.

These nurses also often find themselves supporting family members through hearing tough news.

“I think there isn’t enough recognition across the entire health service of these pressures, not just for the ICU nurses,” she said.

“I think there’s a definite message from the HSE to do more with less.” 

This can lead to people working longer hours, even when dealing with very difficult situations.

“Out of the cohort of nurses that we take in every year, usually one of them gives up the programme because they find it so traumatic. That’s out of nine or 10 nurses in their first year of qualifying,” she said.

She called for better supports, saying while the HSE offers the employee assistance programme, this is limited. “You have to look for it rather than them coming to us," she said.

CUH recently offered a drop-in employee assistance programme service, which she described as “very good”. She would like to see this more available to nurses generally.

Ms Fitzgerald was speaking to the Irish Examiner during the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation conference in Dundalk. The conference theme was burnout facing nurses.