Health Service Executive (HSE) to cut 300 jobs in Ireland
The Health Service Executive (HSE) is proposing to cut up to 300 jobs held by staff on temporary employment contracts in the mid west as part of a new drive to tackle a €35 million financial deficit in the region, the trade union Impact has maintained.
Other cost- saving measures proposed by the HSE Mid West included:
* Closure of the orthopaedic operating theatre and an orthopaedic ward at Croom Orthopaedic hospital;
* 25 in-patient beds will be closed at Ennis General and Nenagh General Hospitals;
* Ward closure at St Joseph’s Hospital;
* Ward closure at the Mid Western Regional Hospital Limerick;
* Staffing will be cut through the elimination of overtime and a reduction in the use of agency staff;
* NCHD medical posts will be reduced through the reduction in locum cover;
* ENT services will be suspended completely;
* Charges in staff canteens will be increased by over 50 per cent (local price rises of 30 per cent are compounded by the imposition of VAT bringing the total cost increase to over 50 per cent).
* Car parking charges will be increased;
* The closures will be reviewed every 12 weeks until the end of the year.
On Wednesday evening the HSE said that it had provided trade unions with a briefing on its financial position. However it made no reference to the proposed cutbacks.
Source: Irish Times
