Sir, – You report ("Tusla struggles to make changes under 'too bureaucratic"' HSE", News, June 21st) that Fred McBride, the Tusla chief executive, believes that wresting control for recruitment from the HSE may be the panacea for the difficulties in recruiting sufficient social workers to provide a quality child protection and welfare service to children.
As a previous chairman of the Irish Association of Social Workers, I can assure him that this is not the case. My social work colleagues have repeatedly stated that retention of social workers is the real challenge for Tusla. The over-emphasis on short-term child protection work to the detriment of longer-term child welfare work has led to many social workers becoming disillusioned, stressed and feeling burned out after only a few years.
The availability of other social work positions within older persons, mental health or disability services, where there is more time to spend with vulnerable children and adults, has resulted in the ongoing exodus. – Yours, etc,
FRANK BROWNE,
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Templeogue,
Dublin 16.