Minister for Health Simon Harris and family trapped in home by protesters.

How can a government - any government - hope to attract a high caliber individual to head up the Dept of Health when they are treated like this?

The last individual to voluntarily sign up for the job was Mary Harney. To her credit, at least she wanted the job. Everyone since has looked longingly at the exit the moment they walked in the door. And I can't blame them.

When you distill all of the problems of the HSE down to 1 individual and treat them as a lightning rod - you are in effect letting everybody else off scott free.

Stop giving the job to career politicians. Take the massive budget of the department, and try to attract a Fortune 500 CEO. Let them tear the HSE to shreds and build it back up again. It would be cheaper in the long run, and we might even get a functional health system in the end.

flazio wrote: »

In this instance, I actually think they would, but by dismissing it as OK would set a dangerous precedent. It's not as if anyone gets vetted before being allowed to take part in a protest.

It's not alright in any way shape or form.

A Tyrant Named Miltiades! wrote: »

Firstly, FG has been in power for 8 years, it's time to end this 'inherited mess' nonsense.

We are still suffering from the private banking debt that cowan's government shafted us with and indeed the increased public spending of the bertie years.
And we will for many years.

A Tyrant Named Miltiades! wrote: »

Secondly, he, as part of the Government, has decided to reduce the resources available to the Government by lowering taxation, which is a pro-cyclical, destructive policy.

Let nobody be mistaken, such policies end with people dying unnecessarily. I'm sorry that Simon Harris was bothered on his weekend off, but there are people out there who rely on public services who are enduring far more real problems, including the unnecessary death of loved ones, via austerity and funding cutbacks.

My sympathy is very limited.

The health sevices in this country were shyte when Harris was in school nevermind the last couple of years.

Plumbthedepths wrote: »

Correct me if I'm wrong but didn't FG as an election promise in 2011 promise to dismantle the HSE one can only assume they had a plan on what came next, or do you think they lied?

They might have, might mind you if not for the fact that labour, the party with major ties to the unions, went into power with them.
There was no way in hell Labour would ever have gone against their union buddies.

And in the last election Fg was tied in with a bunch of independents who again would never challenge all those HSE voters in their constituencies.

AndrewJRenko wrote: »

If he's claiming that staff need to be laid off, it's not unreasonable to ask 'which staff'?

Fair fooks to ya, Andy you will defend the indefensible right to the very end.
No wonder you are always defending what will probably turn out to be one of the world's most expensive children's hospitals.
Hell you must have kloved PPARS. :rolleyes:

Why not get rid of the all the nursing managers, appoint actual managers and have nurses nursing.
Then gut all those admin staff in purchasing and especially accounts who still do not abide by their legal obligations to pay suppliers within a mandated statutory time fram.

Then get rid of the ones collecting stats for how well the HSE and the hospitals are performing and instead actually employ front line staff and people who actual will make a difference.

Also fire whoever "pasted" all the shyte into a file belonging to a Garda Whistleblower because they are a Grade A village idiot.

That is of course assuming the story is true.
And yes we know due to the the usual shyte that is now no longer HSE but Tusla.
All the same though when it comes to wastage and downright incompetence.

Oh and also fire the fookers that left children with rapists despite being told.

Oh and stop renaming hospitals every other week to cut down on costs of rebranding.

AndrewJRenko wrote: »

Why is it too late now? Same contractual situation for the employees concerned.


I haven't worked IN the HSE, but I have worked WITH the HSE. I didn't see too many 'comfy middle management' layers. I saw people working their asses off with poor resourcing, doing their best to create good outcomes.

And in some cases, maybe even in most cases, it actually works. We don't get news headlines for all the babies successfully born today and all the hip operations successfully completed this week.

et's not get manipulated by the press into hysterics.

If there are people who need to be laid off, please give specifics of where they are - what functions/grades need to go.

With the amount of shyte you are pedaling I thought you working in the HSE HQ.

Do you do a stand up routine somewhere ?

Snow Garden wrote: »

There was a great story in Galway A&E when Cowen was Taoiseach. It was reported in the newspapers.

He was doing a walkthru of the Galway Regional A&E and the HSE managers upstairs got word of it. They instructed the porters and staff to move all the trolleys into an unused area just off the A&E. He walked through and saw no trolleys/chaos (the usual) and when he was gone, they moved the trolleys back into the A&E.

Similar situations still exist today,closing elective orthopaedic wards and reopening them as trolley parking areas to show fewer patients in A&E.The INMO always include those hid away patients in their people on trollies count whereas the HSE don't.

Johnny Dogs wrote: »

Simon might be seeking some kind of martyrdom here to take the heat of something else, which I just can't put my finger on right now........

Complete conspiratorial nonsense. Real tinfoil hat stuff.

flazio wrote: »

I completely agree, but I'm not going to make any prejudgements about the people who turned up today and just presume they would behave like those Jobstown muppets.
Thankfully nothing violent happened. They weren't confronted violently and now we need to calmly explain that this action is too risky and open to be abused by less well intended individuals.

But if you were inside looking out how do you tell if they are just frustrated individuals who are harmless or loons who might do your family some harm.

AndrewJRenko wrote: »

If such a person was foolish enough to take on the job for maybe 1/10th of the salary that they are used to, they'd quickly work out that running a public service is very difficult to running a business. THey'd soon work out that getting investment in your 'business' has no connection with how efficient your business is or how many 'customers' you take on. They'd soon learn that you don't get to filter your customers by charging fees - they keep coming. They have this awful habit of not getting sick on your schedule or budget, but you still have to keep servicing them.



OK, so how many of the eHealth and digital teams should be fired then?

As many as needed so they are not overstaffed, perhaps?

Dakotabigone wrote: »

He will resign this week.

And wouldn’t he be right?

He’s working for the country, we’re his boss. And if my boss turns up to my door on a Sunday morning I’d quit my job.

If he sticks through it I’ll only have more respect for him. At least if I make a few mistakes in my job I can go home and get some RnR.

HappyAsLarE wrote: »

Poor Simon Harris has to take the blame for a crappy health service when the truth is that he has very little influence in how good or bad it is. The clerical officers that run the system are the real problem.

Clerical workers on about 30k doubt they making big decisions !