The Minister for Health must urgently address the chronic shortage of public health nurses to prevent the widespread cancellation of routine developmental checks for babies and small children, according to Social Democrats TD Pádraig Rice.
Deputy Rice, who is the party’s spokesperson on health, said:
“It is scandalous that parents across many parts of the country have had appointments for their babies and children suspended due to a national shortage of public health nurses. Instead, they have been provided with barcodes with links to a HSE booklet offering guidance on pregnancy, birth and early childhood.
“Some desperate parents have even been turning up without appointments at their local health centres in the hope that their child will be seen.
“This is extremely concerning, as these checks are crucial in identifying any medical issues or developmental delays that could benefit from early intervention.
“Parents who may be worried that their child is not reaching certain milestones will continue to be left in limbo if the recruitment crisis in public health nursing is not immediately addressed.
“These staff shortages have been heavily impacted by regressive recruitment freezes in 2023/24, as well as the HSE’s Pay and Numbers Strategy.
“Figures released to the Social Democrats late last year showed there were 86 less public health nurses in 2024 than there were at the end of 2020 – a six per cent decrease.
“The 2018 Health Service Capacity Review found there would be a 46 per cent increase in demand for public health nurse appointments by 2031. Yet, instead of scaling up, the numbers in this critical area are reducing.
“We know that the HSE commissioned a ‘Report on Recommendations to Improve Recruitment and Retention of Public Health Nurses and Community Registered General Nurses in Community Nursing Services’, but for some reason this remains unpublished.
“The new Minister for Health must urgently get to grips with this crisis and remove any barriers to recruitment, such as lower pay rates for trainee public health nurses.”
February 12, 2025