Page 9 - World of Irish Nursing April 2018

12 NEWS

Progress slow on Maternity Strategy

INMO outlines unacceptable slow progress on implementation

An InMO delegation out- INMO Oireachtas delegation (l-r): December 2016 to 1,445 WTEs
lined its concerns about slow Mary Gorman, Executive Council in December 2017).
member, Phil Ní Sheaghdha, INMO
progress to the Oireachtas general secretary, and Mary Leahy, first The HSE confirmed that 63
Joint Committee for Health vice-president, at the Dáil where they WTE midwives were recruited
on the implementation of the outlined the INMO’s concerns about the during this period, however
national Maternity Strategy slow progress on the implementation of the numbers leaving the ser-
the Maternity Strategy one year on
last month. vice outpace recruitment
In January 2017 the InMO significantly.
appeared before the Oireach- The reality is that the mater-
tas Committee and welcomed nity services are severely
the launch of Ireland’s first understaffed and, from the
national Maternity Strat- experience of the InMO, there
egy Creating a Better Future is a funding barrier to realistic
Together, 2016-2026. workforce/manpower planning
The InMO Midwives Sec- starting at undergraduate level
tion particularly welcomed and continuing at post grad-
the recognition, within the uate level, in all aspects of
Strategy, of the need to give planning.
pregnant women appropriate Midwifery is a profession
and informed choices about that requires continuity of
their care during pregnancy, staffing levels and it is a con-
supported by access to the cor- cern that the highly pressurised
rect level of care and support environments in which mid-
for their individual needs. context of implementing the national governance model in wives work do not lend
However, one year on, the Maternity Strategy. the same way in which gen- themselves to retention of
InMO outlined its concern that The InMO believes that the eral hospital governance is staff. The pay for midwives is
progress in implementation hospital group structure must enhanced by the national role modestly low for the respon-
is very slow. In a submission provide for the same policy of ‘group directors of nursing’. sibilities held. The Public
to the committee, the Organ- and governance at group level The InMO is becoming Service Pay Commission is cur-
isation said that no further for midwifery services, as is increasingly concerned at the rently looking at the barriers
midwifery led-units have been the case for general services. slow pace of implementation to recruitment and retention
developed despite the posi- Therefore, the appointment of of the strategy and with the in nursing and midwifery in
tive feedback surrounding this ‘group directors of midwifery’ low midwife to birth staffing Ireland and the InMO made
model of care. are a necessary national driver ratios that continue to exist in a detailed submission to this
Likewise, the development for policy and governance this country. body, demonstrating the fact
of community midwifery ser- changes. The implementation The accepted midwife to that Ireland is currently the
vices remains at planning plan published in October birth ratio, which arises from lowest paying country for
stage – recommendation 41 2017, which the InMO was evidence based practice, is nurses and midwives of the five
of the strategy covering a briefed on, set out a plan for one midwife to 29.5 births. main international recruiter
hospital outreach community the establishment of a mater- The Strategy committed to the competitors.
midwifery service was due to nity network within each introduction of this ratio, over Ireland is currently unable
be fully implemented in Q1 Group as a priority and stated a number of years. to retain or recruit sufficient
2018; this has not occurred. specifically that by Q2 2018 a As part of the 2017 funded numbers of nurses and mid-
Arising from a recommenda- maternity network governance workforce plan, the HSE com- wives to continue to provide
tion in the Report of Maternity structure would be in place mitted to increasing the staff safe levels of service to the cur-
Services in Portlaoise General with a network manager, clin- midwifery numbers from the rent model of care delivery. A
Hospital, directors of mid- ical lead, midwifery lead ,and December 2016 census figure major improvement in relation
by 96 whole time equivalent
to pay and recruitment and
wifery have been appointed to
quality and patient safety lead
WIN Vol 26 No 3 April 2018 (19 in total). It is important to place with the InMO yet in 2017. The most recent figures to improve midwifery staffing
all maternity units/hospitals
(WTE) posts at December
clearly identified.
retention planning, is required
Discussions have not taken
levels and provide sufficient
presented to the InMO by the
note that the post of ‘direc-
tor of midwifery’ has a remit
HSE in late January 2018, show
relation to the national gov-
numbers for the expansion
and development of services
ernance model. The InMO
that the overall number of staff
that spans both the maternity
hospital and the adjoining
such as those envisaged by this
midwives has fallen by 16 WTE
believes that midwifery ser-
strategy.
community services in the
vices would benefit from a
in 2017 (from 1,461 WTEs in