The six health regions across the country are set to gain considerable authority to recruit staff under a new plan, while staying within an overall cap. This comes as major changes are being introduced to the health service which has recently approved a workforce of 129,753 full-time staff members.
The Health Service Executive (HSE), which had halted most hiring procedures since last November, has decided to modify its approach. Bernard Gloster, the chief executive of the organisation, informed senior leaders this week that consensus has been achieved on a novel strategy for employee numbers and payment within the health service.
Since 2019, the size of the healthcare staff has seen a growth of 25%, according to Gloster. By the revised conditions, two thousand roles filled last year without any dedicated funds, along with another two thousand temporary roles instituted during the Covid-19 crisis, will be retained.
Gloster explained that, under the upcoming strategy, each of the six health regions of the HSE along with each national service will be assigned a specific staffing level. Each of these regions will have the liberty to determine the posts that need to be filled under this assigned figure. However, the HSE confirmed on Wednesday that these regions will not have the independence to control pay grades.
Each health region will also have a set budget to hire agency staff and pay for overtime. Gloster assured that with each health region or national service having the power to regulate its own staff numbers under the approved cap, they wouldn’t be impacted by any potential challenges arising in other parts of the organisation.
Gloster suggested that a health region or national service will have the ability to make filling specific vacancies a priority within the staffing allocation. They could then adapt and adjust priorities as needed within the bounds of the national policy and guidance. He also added that a supervisory mechanism will be implemented to ensure there is no violation of the staffing allocation. If this happens, he said, the regional chief executive will have a clear path to correct the situation.
He disclosed that the overall authorised employee limit for the HSE is determined by the total number of currently occupied paid positions as of the end of December 2023, totaling 125,420 full-time equivalent positions.
Moreover, this year will see approximately 2,300 roles introduced for new projects, in conjunction with nearly 1,000 personnel incorporated as part of an agency staff transition. An additional 1,000 positions will be created to absorb the transition to direct State employment for hospice staff who formerly worked for State-funded groups.
The revised total staffing limit of 129,753 does not encompass pre-registered nursing and midwifery students.
Gloster declared in a statement that the changes suggest “a positive stride, providing the HSE a two-year forecast of budget and workforce constraints.”
In further news, Gloster confirmed during the weekend that he has received a report from former chief justice Frank Clark concerning the demise of Aoife Johnston at Limerick’s University Hospital in the past December.