Vol. 555 No. 2
348 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Health and Children the total number of nurses currently required throughout the entire health services; the number of vacant positions to be filled if any; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18405/02]
The Health Service Employers Agency, HSEA, undertook a survey of nursing vacancies at 30 April 2002. A copy of this survey will be forwarded directly to the Deputy.
The following are the main points of the survey: there were 2,280 extra nurses employed in the health service in the year ending 30 April 2002; 1,722 nurses were recruited abroad in the year ending 30 April 2002; in addition, 384 nurses work every day in the hospitals as agency nurses; and health boards have increased their nurse staffing by 1,408 in the year, voluntary hospitals have recruited 664 additional nurses and the learning disability sector has boosted its staffing by 208 in the year.
While all sectors reported recruitment was well ahead of resignations and retirements, employers reported that 1,047 vacancies existed at 30 April 2002. These circumstances arise where the volume of additional nursing posts being created outstrips capacity to recruit. The combination of utilising agency nurses and overtime working provides the equivalent of around 1,200 full-time nurses to the service to compensate for shortages while employers continue the recruitment process to fill vacancies.
The ongoing recruitment of nurses from abroad is also impacting positively on the vacancy situation. A total of 3,148 working visas/work authorisations were issued to nurses from non-EU countries between June 2000 and April 2002.
Overall, an additional 5,800 nurses have been recruited to the public health service since 1998. This represents a 19% increase. The latest available figures show that the total number of nurses employed in the public health service is 36,089.
The Health Service Employers Agency is currently undertaking a national survey of nursing vacancies at 30 September 2002. A copy of this survey will be forwarded to the Deputy as soon as it becomes available.
Question No. 349 answered with Question No. 101.
Question No. 350 answered with Question No. 120.
