PSYCHIATRIC NURSES ASSOCIATION of Ireland

PSYCHIATRIC NURSES ASSOCIATION of Ireland
Tel: 045 852300 Email: info@pna.ie

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Category: Press and Media Information

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Wednesday, June 17th: The Psychiatric Nurses Association (PNA) said today that the full implementation of ‘Sharing the Vision – a Mental Health Policy for Everyone’ published today (Wednesday ) will be a key test for the incoming government and engagement with stakeholders, including PNA, will determine the successful delivery of the strategy.

PNA General Secretary, Peter Hughes said:

“We look forward to engagement on all elements of the implementation of the ‘Sharing the Vision’ policy published today. Despite the detailed and expert submissions PNA made to the Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Future of Mental Health Care we were never consulted by the Vision for Change Review group that has now brought forward the new strategy. However, it is clear that frontline psychiatric nurses will again be key in the delivery of crucial elements of this new ‘Sharing the Vision’ policy and it will be absolutely essential that their views are heard in the implementation process  if it is to succeed.”

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Category: PNA Member Information

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Dear Colleagues,

Following engagement between the Health Sector Unions and the HSE today (April 21st), the following has been clarified.

1) The Wearing of Masks.
The HSE and Occupational Health Department have confirmed that all health care workers should now wear masks while caring for patients when they are within a 2 meter distance. Masks should be worn in any scenario where care is being provided and social distancing of 2 metres cannot be adhered to. This includes all community and residential settings. Further instruction on this will be issued by the HSE in the coming days.

2) Priority Testing.
It has also been confirmed that the priority testing, currently underway in the Nursing Home sector, will also incorporate residential settings within the Mental Health and Intellectual Disability Services. This priority testing will encompass all residents and staff within these settings.

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Category: HSE Information

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Click here for more information...

Ask for help if you are struggling to cope or concerned about your ability to care for yourself, your family and patients as you did before the outbreak.

You can access a number of support services through the Workplace Health and Wellbeing Unit. Workplace Health and Wellbeing Unit:

  • a free staff counselling service is available through the Employee Assistance Programme

List of local Occupational Health office and contact details

  • for Health and Safety advice and information phone 1850 520 420

Phone line to help healthcare workers

A dedicated phone line for all healthcare workers is available. It has been set up to give staff and managers information and advice during the coronavirus outbreak.

  • Callsave 1850 420 420
  • Lines are open from Monday to Friday: 8am - 8pm
    Saturday and Sunday: 9 am - 5 pm

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Category: PNA Member Information

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Dear Colleagues,

Please find below information regarding the current Covid 19 emergency. We wish to advise all our members that we are engaging with the HSE on a continuous basis and that all information is subject to change as the situation progresses.

We advise all members to make themselves aware of this information and advise. Each heading includes links to the current information available in relation to each topic.

Further information can be found on the Health Protection Surveillance Centre website hpsc.ie

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS 

NATIONAL POLICY FOR PRONOUCEMENT for Expected Death by Registered Nurses

REDEPLOYMENT

Carry over of Annual Leave 

SOCIAL DISTANCING

PREGNANT and Immunocompromised Healthcare Workers

USE OF PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT (PPEs)

RISK ASSESSMENT

RETIRED NURSES RETURNING TO WORK

STUDENT NURSES

ADVISE FROM THE NMBI

MENTAL HEALTH COMMISSION

WELLBEING SECTION & STAFF HELPLINE - 1850 420 420

ADVICE for ID SERVICES

CARING ARRANGEMENTS

CORNMARKET

COVID-19 HSE Clinical Guidance and Evidence website

A COVID-19 HSE Clinical Guidance and Evidence repository is now available. Click here to access
This site provides a repository of clinical guidance and latest research evidence to equip the clinical community in Ireland to respond to Covid-19. The site contains:

  • HSE Interim Clinical Guidance to provide consistent advice to the clinical community in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. This is based on best available knowledge at the time of completion, written by clinical subject matter experts (SMEs) working with the HSE. These SMEs have both expertise and experience of treating patients for the specific health conditions covered by the guidance.

  • Research evidence summaries prepared by the HSE National Library Evidence team and other stakeholders

  • Facility to request additional published Covid19 evidence in relation to specific clinical questions.

  • Links to point of care tools and educational resources

  • The content of the site is not meant to replace clinical judgment or specialist consultation, but rather strengthen clinical management of patients and provide up-to-date and relevant guidance.  The guidance is iterative in nature and will be updated as the situation changes.

  • This guidance must be read in conjunction with the National HSE Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) Guidance for Possible or Confirmed COVID-19 

  • The repository is accessible from the Staff COVID-19 homepage.

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Category: PNA/ RCSI College of Continuous Professional Development

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10th March 2020

Dear Colleagues

I am writing in relation to the PNA RCSI Programmes. 

RCSI has taken a decision to postpone all planned external events for the time being, in order to try to minimise the number of non-RCSI visitors to the campus.

As you will be aware, Ireland remains in a containment phase for COVID-19. As a health sciences university, RCSI has a responsibility to lead by example in helping contain the spread of the virus.

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Category: PNA Member Information

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03rd March 2020

Dear Colleagues,

Over the past few weeks there has been regular engagement between the HSE and the Health Unions.

A teleconference was held this morning and a follow up telecall will be held on Friday 06th March 2020.

The concerns and queries that have been addressed are available on the Health Protection Surveillance Centre Website www.HPSC.ie. Which is updated on a regular basis as the situation develops.

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Category: Press and Media Information

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Wednesday 19th February : The Psychiatric Nurses’ Association (PNA) said today’s  Mental Health Commission (MHC) Report on  access to acute public mental health beds for adults paints a stark and worrying picture of the impact that the lack of investment, and the failure of successive governments to implement the Vision for Change strategy, is having on our mental health services.

Peter Hughes , General Secretary of the PNA, said the MHC Report confirms many of the findings of the PNA’s own research on the lack of implementation of the Vision for Change strategy, 14 years after it was introduced as the pathway to new beginning for our mental health services.

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Category: Press and Media Information

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Thursday 13 th February : The Psychiatric Nurses Association (PNA) said today that real and substantial actions to address the crisis in mental health services must be a central part of any Programme for Government to be negotiated in the formation of the next government.

Peter Hughes, General Secretary of the PNA, said that during the election campaign all of the political parties had made much of their commitments to investment in mental health services in order to address the crisis that has left services struggling to meet demand at every level.

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Category: PNA Member Information

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The NMBI wishes to thank all nurses and midwives who have paid their annual retention fees for 2020. Almost 95% of registrants have renewed to date.

For those who have not yet renewed, the fee is now overdue and there is a danger of removal from the register.

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Category: Press and Media Information
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Monday, 3rd February: The Psychiatric Nurses Association (PNA) said today the next government must show genuine commitment to investing in mental health services if the current crisis is to be addressed and the growing demand for services at every level is to be met.  
 
Peter Hughes, General Secretary of the PNA, said with all of the main political parties having now issued their Election Manifestos which acknowledge mental health services as one of the priorities for increased investment within our health services, these election manifesto promises must be followed up with actions in the lifetime of the next government.

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Category: Press and Media Information

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Friday 10th January 2020 - The Psychiatric Nurses Association (PNA) ambulance personnel branch, NASRA,said today (Friday) that the current crisis in Emergency Departments with record numbers of patients waiting on trolleys, is putting  the national ambulance service (NAS) under enormous pressure, and is exposing the levels of understaffing and underinvestment in the service throughout the country.

NASRA Branch Secretary, Tony Gregg said the NAS was already struggling to cope with the existing demands on it, including low morale among ambulance personnel. However, the unfolding crisis in ED departments risks pushing the service and ambulance service personnel beyond breaking point. 

Mr. Gregg said: “The National Ambulance Service is running on empty with ambulances held back at ED departments and consistently missing response time targets, ambulances being deployed on very  long journeys across the country and crews being forced to work beyond rostered shifts, and work without the required rest and meal breaks.”

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Category: Press and Media Information

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Friday, November 8 th 2019 : Psychiatric nurses in Waterford, members of the Psychiatric Nurses Association, (PNA) , today (Friday, 8 th Nov.) protested at the University Hospital Waterford at the ongoing overcrowding at the hospital's Acute Psychiatry Unit.

Today's protest follows on last week's unprecedented overcrowding at the Unit which is the latest example of the crisis in mental health services in Waterford brought about through a combination of overcrowding, understaffing and a complete lack of development of Community and Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS).

PNA Industrial Relations Officer, Michael Hayes said today's protest was necessary to highlight the impact that overcrowding and under -resourcing of mental health services in Waterford is having on the delivery of care to vulnerable services users.

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Category: Press and Media Information

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Wednesday 30th October: The Psychiatric Nurses Association (PNA) has today (Wednesday) said that overcrowding in the Waterford mental health services has reached unprecedented levels and has placed staff working in the services under intolerable pressure.

The 44-bed acute Psychiatry Unit at University Hospital Waterford (UHW) has an additional 10 patients admitted on the ward. Ten beds assigned to Waterford Mental Health Services at the private St Patrick’s Mental Health Services in Dublin are now full and a further three Waterford patients have had to be transferred to Kilkenny which is now also fully occupied.

PNA Industrial Relations Officer, Michael Hayes said the overcrowding in the Waterford services has now reached unprecedented levels despite repeated warnings from the PNA in recent months that the situation in the services was deteriorating.

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Category: PNA Member Information
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Dear Members,
 
As you are aware part of the pay commission recommendation is that the eligibility for Senior Staff Nurse is reduced from 20 to 17 years.
 
This will take effect from 1st November 2019. It is imperative that members who have 17 years plus staff nurse experience apply to their Director of Nursing for Senior Staff Nurse before 1st November 2019 in order to have your application submitted prior to the implementation date.
 
Please bring this to the attention of any member who meets the criteria of 17+ years experience
 
Yours sincerely
Peter Hughes
General Secretary