Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 2 May 2024
309. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Health the action being taken to ensure the availability of an adequate number of health professionals within the health services, including, but not limited to, consultants, GPs and nurses to meet the demand in all areas throughout the country; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20144/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraHealth and Social Care workforce planning and ensuring an appropriate pipeline of suitably qualified healthcare professionals in Ireland is a top priority for this Government.
The lifetime of this Government has seen unprecedented level of investment in the health and social care services. As of March 2024, there are 28,480 more staff (inclusive of Disabilities) working in our health and social care services than there were at the beginning of 2020. That’s a 24% increase in this period and includes an additional 9,614 nurses and midwives; 4,240 health and social care professionals; and 3,015 doctors and dentists. Funding for an additional 2,268 permanent staff was secured for the recruitment to New Developments in 2024.
The Government is aware of the workforce issues facing general practice and is working to increase the number of GPs practicing throughout the country and thereby to improve access to GP services.
Under the 2019 GP Agreement additional annual expenditure provided for general practice was increased by €211.6m. This provided for significant increases in capitation fees for participating GMS GPs, and new fees for additional services and increased practice supports. The GP Agreement 2023 further increased GP capitation fees, increased the existing subsidy rates for practice staff, and introduced a grant support for additional staff capacity as well a practice staff maternity leave support. These measures increase the attractiveness of general practice in Ireland as a career for doctors.
The number of doctors entering GP training has been increased significantly in recent years, with 286 new entrants in 2023 and 350 places planned for new entrants for this year. Annual intake to the GP training scheme has been increased by over 80% from 2015 to 2023, and the number of new entrant places to be available this year is a 22% increase on last year's intake alone. In addition, GP recruitment is ongoing under the joint International Medical Graduate Rural GP Programme between the HSE and ICGP. 112 non-EU GPs were recruited last year under the training programme, and it is planned to recruit up to 250 more GPs from outside Ireland to the country this year. The placement of GPs under the programme is targeted to rural and underserviced areas.
My department works in close collaboration with Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science and the Higher Education Sector to significantly increase the number of student places across health-related disciplines.
In July 2022, an agreement was reached with the Irish Medical Schools which will see the number of Irish/EU medicine student places increase by 200 by 2026. There was a significant increase in the number of additional student places available on health-related courses in 2023. In total, over 660 additional student places have been provided in medicine, nursing and midwifery, pharmacy, and other key healthcare courses in academic year 2023/24. This includes over 220 student places across Nursing and Midwifery and Allied Health Professional courses in Northern Ireland.
An agreement has been reached between Queen’s University Belfast, Department of Health, and the Department of Further and Higher Education, which will see 25 additional medical places being made available for qualifying students from Ireland or Northern Ireland in QUB in September 2024, and a further twenty-five places in September 2025 bringing the total number of additional medicine student places available in Northern Ireland to 50.
