Kilkenny hospital is 'being penalised for working within its limits'

St Luke’s General Hospital in Kilkenny is “being penalised for working within its limits”, the Seanad has heard amid concerns over significant staffing shortages at the hospital.

Senator Patricia Stephenson raised staffing levels at St Luke’s with Minister of State at the Department of Health Jennifer Murnane O’Connor, saying 148 vacancies had been recorded at the hospital in August.

“It has done incredibly well in the past in managing budgets, but in many ways, it seems that the hospital is being penalised for working within its limits,” Senator Stephenson said.

She said the vacancies included approximately 67.5 whole-time equivalent nursing posts and warned that the shortages were having “a direct impact on patient and staff safety”.

“Staff are under significant pressure, including huge trolley pressures daily with no relief because of massive overspending by some hospitals, but not in this case by St Luke's,” she said.

Senator Stephenson also raised the continued absence of two emergency department consultants which she said had been promised.

“St Luke's has the third lowest ratio of emergency department consultants per patient attending in the country,” she said.

“Despite it being an incredibly busy model 3 hospital, it is simply not safe enough for patients.”

She also questioned whether staffing the new Carlow injury unit could draw workers away from St Luke’s, where she said staffing levels were already low.

“People in Carlow-Kilkenny are being let down by this. We are being punished for St Luke's being a very effective hospital and for doing such a good job,” she said.

“The inequity is frustrating and it is having a direct impact on staff morale as well.”

Responding on behalf of Health Minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, Minister of State Jennifer Murnane O’Connor said the Government was committed to developing services at St Luke’s.

“Staffing at the hospital grew from 1,185 to 1,505 between the end of December 2020 to July 2026,” the Carlow-Kilkenny TD said.

“It has grown quite considerably. This represents a significant increase of 27%.”

The Minister of State said the HSE continued to “actively progress and approve vacancies and implement workforce planning measures to support service delivery”, while staffing levels, patient activity and service requirements were being monitored.

She also said the hospital’s budget had increased by 62% between 2020 and 2026.

On the new Carlow injury unit, Minister Murnane O’Connor confirmed its staffing would be separate from posts committed to St Luke’s.

“The HSE has confirmed that the staffing, as I have said, in the injury unit will not impact the posts committed in St Luke's Hospital,” she said.

“The posts remain part of the hospital work plan and they are separate from the staffing model of the injury unit.”

Senator Stephenson welcomed the confirmation but returned to the two outstanding emergency department consultant posts.

“Those posts have been promised and they have still not been delivered,” she said.

“When will they be delivered? I suppose we need clarity on that because it is dangerous for people.”

Minister Murnane O’Connor said she would seek clarification.

“I will get clarification about those particular posts because it is important. I will be in contact with the Department today,” she said.

“Working through the HSE and with the Department, there has been an increase in staffing but on those two particular posts, I certainly will come back to her.”

The Minister of State also said work was progressing on the Carlow injury unit.

“We hope to have some of it ready or operational by the end of this year and then, in early 2027, it will be fully operational,” she said.