Specialist nurse shortage
Calls have been for more nurse specialists in neurology to be employed on Leeside as a new campaign was launched to tackle what’s been described as a serious shortage by the Neurological Alliance of Ireland.
The Neurological Alliance of Ireland (NAI) unveiled the campaign on Tuesday saying that CUH has four of these nurses but needs 20 based on, it said, local and international recommendations.
The NAI said that nationally, there is a shortfall of over 100 nurse specialists in neurology in the Irish healthcare system.
At the launch was Tony Wilkinson from Bandon, a patient representative living with Parkinson's disease who shared his experience of living with a long-term neurological condition and the positive impact that a nurse specialist could have on managing it.
He said: “Access to nurse specialists in neurology will give me more confidence to self-manage my condition. It will mean that I have greater involvement in my care, and spend less time on waiting lists. There’s only four nurse specialists in Cork and we need 20. That needs to change and it’s up to us – the patients, our families, and the organisations that support us – to make our voices heard by contacting our TDs. Patients deserve better!”
Nurse specialists in neurology provide a range of services to people with neurological conditions including nurse-led clinics, rapid access clinics, telephone advisory services and outreach services.
The NAI said these nurses can significantly improve the quality of care at lower cost, mainly by preventing unnecessary admissions, through advice, information, support, counselling and, with appropriate safeguards, adjustments in medication.
Speaking about the need to address critical gaps in staffing, Magdalen Rogers NAI Executive Director said: “There are 800,000 people living in Ireland with a neurological condition and they have been historically underserved by the health system. We know that 24,000 people are waiting for a neurology outpatient appointment, with 8,601 waiting more than 18 months resulting in delayed diagnosis and treatment. Neurology patients deserve better.
“Investing in more nurse specialists in neurology is a cost-efficient way of freeing up capacity of neurology consultants, reducing waiting times and ensuring that patients in Cork and across the country have access to the specialist support they need to manage their conditions,” she added.