Spending 'out of control'

CUH has spent at least €2.8 million on temporary agency staff so far this year which has been branded as worrying.

This figure was released to Sinn Féin from the HSE and accounted for the first five months of the year.

Cork TD Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire said: “The data from the HSE revealed that the health service has spent over €135 million on agency staff in the first five months of the year.

“That is a spending of €900,000 a day on agency staff in hospitals and community healthcare organisations.

“The reliance on agency staff in Cork University Hospital is enormous and very worrying – in five months €2.8 million was spent.”

He described agency staff spending as being “out of control”.

“This practice is not good value for money in the first instance, and it is not good for patients or other full-time staff. There can be no doubt that the recruitment embargo on full time staff is clearly causing an increase in agency spending,” the Cork Sinn Féin TD added.

He concluded by saying that “the over-reliance on the use of costly agency staff is a direct result of the escalation of the recruitment and retention crisis under this Government. Unless the recruitment and retention crisis is addressed, then this rampant agency spending will continue to cripple the health service.”