We could be waiting another 8 months for the population to be immunised against the swine flu (H1N1) virus.

That is according to Mary Harney.  Why is this?  It will depend on uptake and supply.  I could have sworn that we were told that the supply part was sorted out.  I must have misheard it.

The IMC have assured doctors who are not participating in the immunisation program that they cannot be sued for not taking part in administering the Flu Vaccines.

Meanwhile the idea has been mooted that pharmacists may get involved in administering the swine flu vaccine too.

Some people in the at risk groups have reported that they have to travel large distances to get the jab.  It is also still uncertain whether a second jab may be necessary.  What will determine that?  How many people one jab does not work for.  Makes you feel safe in the capable hands of our health service executive doesn’t it!

Ever since Thalidomide people have been scared of putting anything they may not have to into their bodies (other than drugs and alcohol apparently).  I know that I for one will have no hesitation in getting myself immunised.  Why would I not?  I don’t want swine flu and having had the usual yearly flu vaccination for years I do not fear a slightly different version of it.  What I do fear is that by the time I get a chance to get the injection I will have already caught swine flu.

It is spreading at an alarming rate.  We have had relatively few deaths from it but by all accounts it is rather an unpleasant experience.  I dare say that for those who didn’t make it through and their relatives it was a sight more than alarming and unpleasant.

Agency Nursing used to be a great fallback for Irish Nurses.  Many chose to work solely as agency nurses because of the flexibility that gave.  You could choose your hours.  You were never guaranteed a shift but it was a good likelihood as long as you were not too picky about where you worked.

Mary Harney has announced that Crumlin Childrens Hospital is overstaffed.  As professor Crown so rightly points out, closing wards by slashing budgets needed to keep them staffed does not count as over-staffing.  Increasing patient numbers are now to be dealt with with utilising severely curtailed resources.  Some are being forced to look to the UK for treatment.

This is just one example.  The message is clear.  There are to be less nursing posts.  Is this a problem for nurses?

Just a few short years ago hospitals were clambering over themselves to source staff from India because we didn’t have enough Irish staff willing to work in Irish conditions.  Together with the Filipino nursing backbone of our country the addition of large numbers of Indian staff nurses added to the wonderful mix of cultures that make up a modern Irish Hospital.

Working conditions are arguably far worse now.  Nursing is still a passport to see the world.  Now with degrees under their belts, newly qualified nurses expect more.  But it is not so easy to expect more when you need to pay your bills and feed yourself.  If I was a new graduate I would be off to see the world, working as I went.

Are agency days over?  They probably should be.  Nursing agencies only grew so big because of bad staff management in the hospitals and hospices they served.  Some Hospitals were taking in 20+ agency staff a day (nurses and carers). The bill was massive.  The reason was that the Hospitals were not approved the funding for permanent job positions that would have cost far less.  Instead they had to pay through the nose for Agency Staff.  That sort of ridiculous situation needed to stop.  Yes there will probably always be a need for Nursing Agencies to provide temporary staff.  This is not ideal, since agency staff will not know the ward they are working on as well as permanent staff.  This leads to increased workload on the permanent staff.  If an agency nurse does know the ward as well as permanent staff then that must be an indicator of a case for another permanent staff member.

Final advice: If you are a nurse and not planning to leave the country get yourself into permanent employment as quickly as you can.  The current situation is not going to ease in the near future.