THE MINISTER FOR Health has announced that Government has approved proposals to provide €12 million in additional supports for student nurses and midwives on placements, following a protest held outside Leinster House this week.
As part of this, the Pandemic Placement Grant of €100 per week will be extended to all eligible nursing and midwifery students on placement for this academic year, and backdated to September.
Health Minister Stephen Donnelly said: “Government is also providing additional support to students needing overnight accommodation away from their normal place of residence in order to attend some of their clinical placements. We are doubling the cap on the vouched accommodation allowance to €100 per week of placement.”
Student nurses and midwives undertake 45 weeks of placement in 1st, 2nd, and 3rd year of study, and the first semester of 4th year.
These students are not included in the staffing complement, and instead are there to learn under supervision of a registered nurse or midwife and are not accountable for patient care.
Student nurses who spoke to The Journal raised concerns about not being able to learn properly because they are carrying duties that don’t fall under the terms of their placements, and for which they don’t get paid.
One example of how student nurses are put under pressure during their placements, is that they should be looking after three patients at a time, but often are looking after six.
The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) had said that they were waiting for the independent report relating to student nurses and midwives’ pay, carried out by Seán McHugh, which had been submitted to Government in August.
Up until this week, the organisation had not seen the report – though details were leaked to the Irish Times this week.
The report has been published this evening, along with a Government statement announcing new measures for student nurses and midwives.
The report found that the rate of pay for student nurses and midwives on 36-week paid internship placement be changed, with an increase to 80% of the first point of the staff nurse or midwife pay scale.
The temporary interim measure concerns an additional payment of €50 per week (equivalent to 50% of the Pandemic Placement Grant) to all student nurses on their 36-week paid internship placement, worth an extra €1,800.
This proposed interim measure will be put in place while work is underway to develop those detailed proposals to give effect to the recommendation relating to intern pay.
Response from the Opposition
Sinn Féin health spokesperson David Cullinane said that the actions brought forward by Minister Donnelly on student nurse and midwife pay “do not go far enough”, and is not a long-term solution.
Cullinane called for a permanent bursary scheme for student nurses and midwives of €3,000, which would be nearly double the existing pandemic €100 a week payment for weeks on placement, which is currently only available to the end of this academic year.
He welcomed the moves to restore intern pay and a limited increase in the vouched accommodation allowance but said that the overall package falls far short of a fair allowance.
Cullinane said: “These proposals do not form the basis of a fair allowance by any means.
“The restoration of intern pay to pre-cut levels is welcome as is the minor increase in the vouched accommodation allowance however this should be backdated to October 2020 to reflect pay restoration more generally in the public service.
“However, the overall package does not do justice to the work that student nurses and midwives do, and it will not act as a morale booster to retain nurses and midwives who are graduating into full-time employment.
“They do not feel valued, and this announcement will be disappointing to many.
“The Minister should have pursued the INMO’s very reasonable proposal of a €3,000 bursary for student nurses and midwives with fair allowances to meet additional costs related to placements.
Irish nurses and midwives will continue to leave shortly after graduation unless we treat them fairly while they are working as students.
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