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Absenteeism blamed by GHA for KGV crisis
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The GHA says it "totally rejects the inaccurate and incomplete statements made by T&G officials this week in relation to KGV Hospital."
In a statement, they add: The crisis at KGV is caused by the unacceptable level of absenteeism among some staff members. The Union has carefully failed to point out that during the last weekend only 12 members of staff out of 18 scheduled were available for work at KGV. There is no staffing level that would provide immediate cover for that degree of absenteeism. The GHA agrees that other members of staff are having to put in excessively long hours to cover the service and the GHA is extremely grateful to those nurses for their professionalism and dedication to duty. But the reason for the need for them to work these excessive hours is not, as the Union claims, the failure of managers to properly plan, but the level of absenteeism by some of their colleagues.
HIGH LEVELS
The staffing levels at KGV are what they have always been. They have not been decreased. The staffing levels at St Bernard?s Hospital are at record high levels. Never has our hospital had more nursing staff. Furthermore, contrary to what the Union says, the nursing staff level has nothing whatever to do with the degree of bed occupancy. The staffing level reflects the bed capacity, that is the number of beds, whether they are occupied or not.
The Government also notes with surprise, the remarks about the future of the Mental Health Hospital. The Union must be aware of the GHA?s plans for a new Mental Health Hospital and the Mental Health Strategy, in the development of which KGV staff are actively involved.
INCIDENTS
Finally, the GHA says ut refutes the T&G?s statement that responsibility for any future incidents at KGV rests at the door of the staffing level issues. As with all health care related incidents where failure has occurred, the facts of each case will determine where responsibility lies and by whom whether they are clinical, administrative or managerial posts.
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