Dublin South West TD Seán Crowe has claimed that doctors and nurses are leaving Ireland and the health service in huge numbers. Almost 9 out of every 10 trainee nurses are planning to leave when they qualified he claimed citing an NUIG survey where career opportunities, working conditions and lifestyle were the top three factors by some 88 per cent of the 2,000 students surveyed. Newly qualified Doctors are also leaving in their droves with 1,000 leaving between the years 2009 and 2013.
Deputy Seán Crowe said:

“Last year, a NUI Galway survey of 2,000 students across six medical schools found almost 9 out of every 10 trainee nurses, and those who had qualified through the process, planned to leave or were contemplating leaving Ireland when they finished their training. Career opportunities, working conditions and lifestyle were cited as the top three factors by some 88 per cent of over 2,000 students surveyed.

“Another survey in May this year carried out by the Royal College of Surgeons came to similar conclusions with doctors and nurses citing a ‘general disrespect’ for health professionals as the primary cause for leaving Ireland.
Newly qualified Doctors are also leaving in their droves with 1,000 leaving Ireland between the years 2009 and 2013. To put these numbers in context Ireland trains 157 GPs a year.

“Only last week, revelations in respect of the HSE recruitment campaign highlighted the scarcity of qualified nurses coming in to work in the Irish health system. This has all the hallmarks of a broken health system, without any realistic plan for meaningful reform it will continue to limp along, losing staff and crucially failing to attract the necessary talent that our health services and our patients demand.

“The greatest barriers to retaining and recruiting nurses and doctors to our public health system is the low pay, long hours, a lack of permanency and the toxic work environment. Doctors and nurses need to believe that their work environment, pay and conditions will improve, getting better and stay better.

“Is it any wonder the Health Service Executive are experiencing unprecedented difficulties in encouraging nurses, doctors and other health workers to work in our public health service .when you consider the overcrowding, the intimidation, and shortages of staff.

“Half-hearted recruitment efforts simply will not cut it especially to those newly qualified who have experienced the current system.

“Any effort to retain existing and recruit further doctors and nursing staff will only succeed if a believable financial long term commitment is made by government to expand health workforce numbers to the level needed.

“We also need to change the current system by radically reshaping the working environment in our health system.

“The Government, its Minister for Health and HSE needs to address the root causes of its failure to recruit and the heart of this lies in the workplace.

“We have seen in recent times many of the health unions, in an unprecedented manner, threatening industrial action not about pay or job security but about the failure of the HSE to deliver on its commitment to its workforce. This again is more evidence on what needs to be done to keep doctors and nurses in Ireland.

“Our healthcare workers and our doctors and nurses are the envy of the world. They deserve decent pay, respect and recognition for their professionalism and most of all a decent place to work in.”