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A GOVERNMENT TD has called for an inquiry over the dismissal of whistleblower Louise Bayliss, who lost her job weeks after raising concerns about the treatment of patients at St Brendan’s Hospital in Grangegorman, Dublin.
Fine Gael’s Derek Keating said Bayliss should be invited to speak to the Oireachtas committee on Health and Children, of which he is a member.
“I believe the inquiry I’ve called for should start in the Oireachtas,” he told RTÉ’s This Week, adding that Bayliss “must be reinstated” to her position.
Labour’s Joe Costello has also raised concerns over the dismissal of Bayliss, who was employed by the Irish Advocacy Network – funded by the HSE – as an advocate for mental health patients in the Dublin area.
Before Christmas, Bayliss drew media attention to the closure of an open unit at St Brendan’s Hospital – meaning that patients there would spend Christmas in a secure unit, whose other residents require much tighter controls.
It emerged this week on RTÉ’s Liveline that she had been dismissed from her post three months into a six-month contract.
Joe Costello said: “Louise’s contract is paid for by the HSE using taxpayers money, and the HSE should ensure that if her dismissal was linked to whistle blowing on patients care, she should be reinstated.”
The Irish Advocacy Network could not be reached for comment by TheJournal.ie. However, in a statement provided to This Week the network said any suggestion that Bayliss had been dismissed over her contact with the media was “completely unfounded”.
Been following this on joe duffys show too right there should be support and screw the HSE threatining her and dismissing her.
True, Jimbo. But pay heed, people. Louise’s employer, which dismissed her, is the Irish Advocacy Network, a body whose purpose is to represent the interests of users of the mental health system. Why is a body which is supposed to represent mental health patients firing someone who did just that, in a conscience-driven way?
I work pro bono in this area, and over the past five years many in the field have watched the IAN morph from a patients’ rights advocacy group into a totally coopted part of ‘the system’ which fails those it is supposed to represent. Why? Because it is no longer independent, being financed by HSE cash. And because many of its leading lights have been given ‘posts’ on boards, etc, and turned into obedient servants of those who rule the health system.
she should be given a promotion, she cares about the people in her care regardless of the outcome. Maybe she’s the type of person we need in government, she’s got a heart unlike the rest.
Keep talking Louise. We’re listening. They can’t shut you up now. God help them if they try.
Absolutely appalling yet not surprising in this great country of ours. By the way, joe Duffy must take a share of the blame in all of this as he was only too happy to let this girl hang herself. Hope you are enjoying your 300k Joe (man of the people).
I’m confused. This woman worked as an advocate for patients, she witnessed the HSE doing something wrong, something they should not be doing to patients and so she brought this to the attention of the media using a false name. Now bear in mind those doing this were fully aware of what they were doing so it wasn’t a surprise for them to hear it – they just didn’t want others to know they were doing it.
This is where it gets interesting. I understand Louise Bayliss employers recognised her voice, and it didn’t help that she used her first name in radio interviews, so they made excuses to sack her. She said her manager first told her ” she would have to complete a basic six-day FETAC Grade 4 training course — even though she specialised in mental health for her master’s degree.” She agreed to this. But at another meeting she was told she wouldn’t be allowed back on the wards unless completing further training which they hadn’t time to allow her to do, so she was effectively sacked.
We could infer that the HSe put pressure on IAN to get rid of her, after all it sounds very odd for an Patient Advocacy Network to sack an employee who was… well… advocating for her patients, and doing so very well. What possible reason could they have? Ahh she did her job a little too well, and too publicly and it all comes back to that part at the beginning where they didn’t want others to know they were doing it, well everyone knows now thanks to Louise. The HSE don’t do forgiveness, and they don’t do forgetfulness but what they do do very well is revenge. Just ask Louise Bayliss.
What kind of a farce of a country are we living in. H.S.E acting like a Kangaroo court its their way or no way.How long more are we going to put up with it .
We need more people like Louise Bayliss in this country.
Here’s a petition I set up for Louise:
http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/louise-bayliss-job-reinstatement/
Please sign.
Thanks.
Thank you so much for that. I really appreciate your kindness.
Signed and shared the link on my fb page
Good luck
Same here.
Thanks to you AJ and well done Louise!
Done.
I want to congratulate Louise Bayliss. You are an honest caring woman.
I admire your strength of character and you decision to speak up when you saw vulnerable people being treated unfairly. Well done and I hope things work out for you too. I will e mail my local td’s and ministers too.
the hse seem to be laws unto themselves. even gp’s will not interfere in say, primary care teams and asking for stuff for their patients, for fear of getting on the bad side of the community care workers!
ive started a twitter thing too!!
Well well! Usual Irish bullshit lies from those in charge. Why the hell else was she dismissed. In this country you are not allowed to do your job. Clowns are in charge and they’re going to stay in charge because that’s how Ireland operates.
The mental health service is a bloody joke in this country. People are still too frightened to stand up to the HSE, especially psychiatric patients and who can blame them, open your mouth and it is closed with a Xanax or a longer prison term. That is a fact!!! I would confidently say over 90% of patients in the services are over medicated. Families need to be more involved in the care of their loved ones otherwise they will become victims of the system and over drugging consultants. It is terrifying, if only people were more aware of the crooked TOTALITARIAN system. As for the hospital facilities, as it stands there is a need for separate wards for people with different mental health issues depending on the nature and severity of their illness, as it stands, the acute wards can be a daunting place and have a profound impact on patients recovery period. Ms Bayliss did the job she was asked to do, more power to her.
Not saying she was wrong to bring it to the public forum, just thought it could have been done better
She was talking about another issue & this came up,…..I had a conversation with somebody far enough up the HSE ladder & they said the reason all the health ministers fail is because within the HSE there are too many powerful groups that are a law on to themselves & they must be broken up for any success of the health service reform.
She could not of done it better you should be saying,she got it highlighted out there for people to see what scum is in the HSE using bullyboy tactics they are a failure to society.
@Peter 66
And therein lies the nub of the issue. There is no need to attack front line public servants in the fight to right the wrongs of this country. Our Guards, Nurses, Prison Officers, Fire Fighters, Ambulance Crews etc. etc. are there to serve the welfare of the citizens of the country for a basic wage with a heavy tax. The public institutions of this country are controlled by faceless bureaucrats who are self serving and untouchable and the only mention of their names or idea of their existence is when we read about the payment of some outlandish retirement package and then a shadow in the sunset.
If any of the above: Nurse, Guard, Prison Officer, or other front-line public servant should in any way break the ‘omerta’ of this powerful group we see what happens like in the Dr. Michael Neary case.
Louise was originally on the Joe Duffy as a single mum who was representing our SPARK campaign not as a whitle blower. Louise has worked very hard in order to obtain that job in the first place she was very concerned over the welfare of these women and has given them a voice that they would never have had without her.
I think maybe she would have been better off sending an anoymous email to Joe Duffy, as the damage she has caused now to the relations between patient advocacy and institutions is immense.
Not every body is like you ( hiding behind annonymity) SHE as in Ms Louise Baylis has not caused any harm or damage . She is a brave upstanding woman who spoke out against unfairness to vulnerable people. You carry on hiding and putting your head in the sand.:)
She stood up, did the right thing and spoke the truth.
Maybe if there were more like her, unwilling to bend the knee for pure self interest, this country wouldn’t be the cess-pit of corruption and lies that it is
Fair play to her!!
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