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Frontline workers are warning about the seasonal pressure on services ranging from hospitals to fire brigades to animal welfare as Christmas approaches.
Tony Fitzpatrick of the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) told RTÉ Radio 1’s Today with Claire Byrne show that while nurses work 365 days of the year, the closure of other facilities such as GP practices, puts more pressure on the hospital system at this time of year.
Greg O’Dwyer of Dublin Fire Brigade added they also face extra service demand with the additional activity in homes along with more electrical items being charged, more cooking, and more open fires and candles.
Mr Fitzpatrick said the ongoing trolley crisis, with record figures for 2023, meant that staff were working in completely overcrowded conditions that were often “inhumane and undignified” for patients.
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The situation with such overcrowded, unsafe conditions was unfair for nurses and for patients, he said. “The situation as we come up to Christmas is likely to get worse.
“And it’s very demoralising for staff; they know safe patient ratios and safe staffing levels deliver safe care, and the environment exists where they’re trying to go to work,” he said.
“They’re already understaffed. There are significant deficits within the system, and the HSE is operating a recruitment freeze, which is idiotic in the extreme.”
Historically, it had always been the case the situation gets worse over Christmas, added Mr Fitzpatrick.
Mr O’Dwyer said it was known this would be a very busy period for the fire service. There were always additional calls because of the extra cooking, extra people around and candles that were a danger. He urged people to use LED candles, or if they were using traditional candles to put them in proper fireproof containers.
“If you’re using candles, please put them in a proper container on a proper surface. Keep them at least a metre away from anything. People forget. They put a candle maybe on a bookshelf with a shelf above it. The timber above the candle can actually overheat and catch fire as well.”
Another safety issue was the charging of multiple devices at the same time. Mr O’Dwyer said it was important not to overload sockets; to use proper, approved chargers; and not to leave items charging overnight unattended.
Vet Eamon O’Connell pointed out that like people, animals get sick every day of the year so services for their care were also required throughout the holiday season.
Mr O’Connell warned families to ensure pets, especially dogs, did not eat left-over food items that were not good for them. Dark chocolate in particular was toxic for dogs, he said.
It was not safe to give the turkey carcass to pets, and Christmas cake, raisins and grapes were also dangerous for dogs, he added.
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