Fórsa’s national health team met last week (Monday 7^th September) with the Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly TD. It was the union’s first official engagement with the minister since the Government was formed in June, and was described by the team as a very positive engagement.

Fórsa’s head of Health and Welfare Éamonn Donnelly said the objective of the meeting for the union was to ensure the minister’s awareness of the broad range and categories of workers represented by Fórsa across the health services.

Éamonn told the minister that the implementation of the Sláintecare Programme would require commitment from both Government and opposition parties, while its delivery would draw upon the skills and experience of every Fórsa member in the health system: “In particular, we wanted to get across to the minister how crucial these workers are to transforming our health services. 

“As we move from an over-reliance on an acute hospital-based system to a community-led preventative and early-intervention model that’s universally accessible, Fórsa members will play a crucial role at every turn,” he said.

Éamonn said the minister appeared to be very well briefed, confirming the implementation of Sláintecare as one of three concurrent priorities for the department. “His comments left us in no doubt that he understands the vital roles of this cohort of the health workforce. We have, for a long time, felt that the Department of Health did not fully understand this crucial point,” he said.

A number of specific issues were covered in the course of the meeting, including Fórsa’s positive disposition and proven track record in the transition to community-led healthcare, and the union’s participation in the Community Healthcare Organisation (CHO) model. Éamonn said the union emphasised the need for effective workforce planning to deliver this model, as the union had previously outlined to the Oireachtas Committee on Healthcare.

Priorities

In addition to the implementation of Sláintecare, the minister outlined the department’s concurrent priorities as an immediate strategy that allows society to progress, and live alongside, Covid-19, plus the delivery of the winter programme.

Fórsa’s team outlined the union’s priorities, including the need to reinvent the Section 39 agency funding model, which is the subject of the union’s ‘Unfinished Business’ campaign (see ‘related articles’ below). 

The union gave examples of how grades represented by the union contribute to positive outcomes in health, in addition to required actions to improve human resources arrangements in the health system. Éamonn added: “For example, we emphasised a number of issues relating to health and social care professionals (HSCPs), such as the urgent requirement to appoint a HSCP policy advisor at the appropriate leadership level in the department, and the need to address the complexities of HSCP recruitment and the difficulties with national panels. We also spoke to the minister about the importance of the HSCP career pathway review, and how that would help achieve better patient outcomes.”

Fórsa also emphasised the vital role played by clerical and administrative staff in the delivery of healthcare services, and the importance of health managers in progressing the Sláintecare agenda. Éamonn added: “These are absolutely crucial roles that are often overlooked in the national commentary, which is due mostly to a lack of understanding about how these workers support clinical health staff, and efficiently direct resources to where they are needed.”

Éamonn also raised the issue with the minister of managers who have worked excessive hours during the pandemic, and the Department of Health’s failure to provide the legal minimum compensatory rest, as reported in the last news bulletin.

He added: “It was a very positive and, I think, constructive engagement with the minister. We met under uniquely challenging circumstances for our health services, and there’s little doubt the winter ahead is going to present a number of new challenges. In that spirit, we agreed with the minister for more open communication lines between ourselves and the department.”

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