ABSENTEEISM IN the major acute hospitals in the west is not being reduced quickly enough, according to the regional director of operations in HSE West, John Hennessy
The latest figures relating to Galway University Hospital (GUH) show that it has an average absenteeism rate of 5.6 per cent.
“If you take a large hospital and 5-6 per cent of staff are absent, it means that 100 staff are absent every day,” he said. “That is way too high and it represents a huge lost opportunity for service delivery, productivity and continuity.”
The figures for May from GUH show that absenteeism rates are highest among the 1,237 nursing staff at 6.63 per cent and the 221 “other patient and client care” at 8.3 per cent.
Figures provided by the HSE show that the absenteeism rate in the HSE West’s other major hospital, the Midwest Regional Hospital in Limerick, is 6.6 per cent, with a rate of 7.3 per cent among the hospital’s 703 nursing staff and 11.5 per cent among the hospital’s 211 other care staff.
The current HSE target is to reduce absenteeism to 3.5 per cent.
Mr Hennessy admitted that low morale may be a factor in the high absenteeism rates. “That is an issue we have to grapple with nationally and locally in terms of how people feel coming into work for the HSE,” he said.
“The organisation has taken a considerable battering for some time. I imagine it does have a bearing on morale levels in front line areas.”
The costs from absenteeism rates of 5 per cent to 6 per cent are considerable, he added. “Absenteeism in the front-line area represents a direct hit in terms of replacement costs.”
Progress is being made. “We are showing pretty steady reductions over last year and this year. I’m confident it is moving in the right direction, but I’m not happy we’re getting quick enough results on that.”
The HSE was unable to provide the cost of ongoing absenteeism in the two major hospitals.
The chairman of the HSE West, Padraig Conneely, said the HSE needs to adopt a more aggressive stance on the issue.
“If absenteeism was reduced to 4 per cent, it would allow more wards and beds to be opened up,” he said.
A HSE spokeswoman said that at Galway’s and Limerick’s main hospitals, absenteeism is a key item on the hospital management team agendas and monthly absenteeism reports are given to each directorate, which highlight the areas in need of most attention.
“HR staff are conducting audits on areas where absenteeism levels are high and corporate internal audit has been invited to conduct further audits.”
She said the HR departments in the hospitals provide support and advice in relation to absenteeism in consultation with stress management counsellors, the Occupational Health Department and the Employee Support Service programmes.
Mr Hennessy’s comments come after the Minister for Health James Reilly said at the MacGill summer school that increased waiting lists in hospitals in January were the result of bad management rather than a surge in admissions. The rise is often blamed on an increase in respiratory diseases and the winter vomiting bug.
Dr Reilly said the work of Dr Martin Connor, who is looking at problems in the health service, revealed that there are no more admissions in January than there are in February, March or April, though patients often ended up waiting on trolleys in January for treatment.
The Minister blamed the “disorderly return to work” after the Christmas holidays and the possibility that hospitals felt January was a good month to cancel elective surgery.
He said all hospitals must clear their waiting lists within 12 months or risk losing funding.
Dr Reilly said changes to the health system must be evidence-based and he would wait for Dr Connor to present his findings.