Sir, - We would like to support the letter, from our colleagues Seamus O Riain of St Vincent's Hospital. Over the past twenty years, the role of nurses in the delivery of care in hospitals and particularly in critical care units such as ours has changed considerably. Nursing staff are now participants in a multi disciplinary team, who bring their own particular skills to patient care, management, education and rehabilitation.
They and their younger colleagues do this while maintaining the standards of devoted care traditionally associated with the Irish nursing profession. Their demand that their changed role be acknowledged, and that a career structure which recognises their skills be implemented, is a just one.
It is a great pity that the present dispute has reached a level at which this caring and dedicated group of professionals feel they have to take industrial action. Even at the last minute, we hope the dispute may be settled. Considerable damage has already been done to the welfare of patients by the cancellation of planned admissions and disruption of hospital services over this week.
This will take a considerable length of time to repair and will seriously inconvenience thousands of patients. We sincerely hope that an agreement can be reached, so that further damage can be avoided. - Yours, etc.,
St Vincent's Hospital,
Dublin 4.