There was overwhelming public support on day one of the nurses' strike as hundreds of nurses in Cork turned out for picket duty yesterday. Passing motorists honked horns, people on public transport waved to the picket lines and pedestrians shook hands with the striking nurses as a sign of solidarity.
However, there was no euphoria on the picket lines. Nurses young and old said their preference would have been to be on the wards rather than outside the hospital gates. But they said the Government was directly responsible for the situation and failure to talk with or listen to the nursing units had led to the present impasse.
One staff nurse, Ms Kate Richards, from the Erinville Hospital in Cork, said the public support for the nurses had been overwhelming. "There was ample time for both sides to come together long before this, but it was not used. I know that people will become upset if the strike is prolonged, but we are steadfast in our determination and this action will continue for as long as it takes. Naturally, emergency care will be provided where necessary."
Ms Eileen Higgins, a nurse with 27 years' service, said the situation was horrendous but was not of the nurses' own making. The strike was a damning indictment of the Government, she added. The accident and emergency unit at the Cork University Hospital was operating yesterday but was not under undue pressure. It appeared the public had responded to the Southern Health Board's request to come to the hospital only if there was a pressing need.
According to the health board, which administers the second-largest region in the State, only 70 of the 260 nurses who would normally be on duty at Cork University Hospital were working yesterday. Only two of the 10 operating theatres were in use, and some 30 of the 483 beds at the hospital were closed. A spokesman for the SHB said that at Tralee General Hospital, where 155 nurses would usually be on duty, the number had been reduced to 55 because of the strike. Some 76 of the 324 beds there were closed yesterday, and elective procedures were cancelled.
At Bantry General Hospital half the nursing staff of 24 were on duty; 31 of the 68 acute beds were not in operation.