The Irish Nurses Organisation (INO) has welcomed the Health and Safety Authority report on accident and emergency (A&E) units. The organisation said it vindicated its position that overcrowding was contributing to health and safety problems in hospitals.
Pointing out that the INO had been pursuing the issue with management for over three years, its general secretary Liam Doran said that following the report, employers now owed staff and patients an apology. "We will be asking what progress has been made on the issue at the next meeting of the Accident and Emergency Forum," he said.
The Irish Hospital Consultants Association (IHCA) said overcrowding was the "single most important problem" to be resolved in dealing with health and safety in A&E departments.
Responding to the Health and Safety Authority's report, the assistant secretary general of the IHCA, Donal Duffy, said specific obligations had been placed on the Health Service Executive (HSE) following the report. "The HSE has been put on notice by the Health and Safety Authority to address the overcrowding issues. If the executive fails within a reasonable period of time to respond appropriately, then the Health and Safety Authority must use its statutory powers to protect patient safety."
Asked if the IHCA was suggesting the ultimate closure of A&E departments to protect staff and patients, Mr Duffy said it was.
The director of industrial relations with the Irish Medical Organisation, Fintan Hourihan, said the report was "the final and absolute confirmation of the state of crisis" in A&E departments.