Cabinet agrees extra allowances for student nurses and midwives in €9m package
Under plans agreed by Cabinet, nurses and midwives are to get extra allowances for meals and subsistence, as part of a €9m package.
Student nurses and midwives are to receive €500 a year during years one to three of their studies, to cover the extra costs of meals associated with practice placements outside of the student's core placement site.
Under plans agreed by Cabinet, nurses and midwives are to get extra allowances for meals and subsistence, as part of a €9m package.
This was first recommended in the McHugh Report, which was published in April 2021.
A new rate of €80 for overnight accommodation is also being introduced.
There will also be an increased weekly cap of €300 for students who need accommodation away from their normal place of residence while attending practice placements.
Those benefiting from the payments can also avail of the reasonable cost of uniform laundry services, during periods of overnight accommodation, on a vouched basis.
They will also get two extra uniforms at the start of their internship.
Pay is to be reinstated at 80% of first-year staff nurse/midwife pay scale for internship students.
The enhanced travel and subsistence supports agreed by Government will be backdated to the start of the current academic year from September 2022.
The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) has welcomed the long-awaited supports approved by Cabinet.
It said these measures are an important step in supporting student nurses and midwives, but also in building measures to retain them on qualification.
"Students are affected by the same cost-of-living challenges as their qualified colleagues, with many of them struggling to meet the costs of transportation, fuel, heating, accommodation, and other necessities for completing their training," INMO Student and New Graduate Officer Roisin O’Connell said.
"Travel is a big part of student placements, but some students will have to pay for accommodation in two places. Supports for these really significant expenses and for uniforms will mean a lot to our student members," she added.
