Striking show of co-operation

If strikes are supposed to be nasty and confrontational, somebody forgot to tell the management and staff of Wexford General Hospital.

Picketing in bitterly cold conditions outside the hospital yesterday, nurses expressed anger at the Government's hardline position and said they would stay out as long as it takes for their demands to be met. But both the nurses and the management are determined that the strike will not damage relations at the hospital. A strike committee is in constant communication with management so that problems are dealt with as quickly as they arise.

"We could not survive without that level of co-operation," said the hospital's general manager, Ms Teresa Hanrahan. "The nurses, even though they're not being paid, are really caring for the patients. I have the height of regard for the way they're dealing with the situation in a really professional manner."

The strike has left the hospital with, in effect, night-duty cover throughout the day. Wards which would normally have between five and seven nurses are being run with two.

But the level of organisation is such that some nurses required for specific emergency cover, such as theatre work, are on the picket lines at all times and can be called in at a moment's notice. Twice on Tuesday nurses came in for Caesarean section deliveries.

"We have a very good working relationship within the hospital and that has been maintained since the strike began," said the strike committee chairwoman, Ms Rebecca Pierce. "We've made extensive plans since the beginning of last week to ensure that as many foreseeable problems as possible are dealt with."

The result, according to one patient who spoke to The Irish Times, has been to minimise the impact of the strike on patients. Mrs Elizabeth Hore, who has to make frequent trips to the hospital from her home seven miles away, would know if standards were dropping. "There has been no reduction in the level of care whatsoever."