Members of the Western Health Board have reacted angrily to the news that 169 jobs will have to be cut from the service in order to make savings of €1.15 million demanded by the Department of Health.
The organisation's chief executive, Dr Sheelah Ryan, reiterated at yesterday's monthly board meeting that sufficient savings could only be reached by this level of job cuts.
The Department sought the savings from the board in July, but had estimated that the cuts required would amount to only 85 posts in clerical, management and administration roles.
The board disputed this, originally stating that 200 posts would have to go.
That figure was subsequently revised downward to 169, and yesterday Dr Ryan explained how the discrepancy had arisen between the Department's figures and those of the health board.
The Department's methodology was based on estimating from higher grades, she said.
But it was not possible to implement cuts in those grades at present, because of existing contracts between the board and employees in senior posts.
In the short term, the predominant impact will be on clerical grades and, since these are lower-income workers, more must go to make up the shortfall.
"This would involve approximately 169 people on short-term or fixed contracts, all of whom will have their contracts honoured in full," according to Dr Ryan.
"Next year, as more senior posts fall vacant, these will also be included in our re-engineering work and we will be able to achieve a better balance."
Under the current board proposals, Mayo will lose 41 posts, Roscommon 15.5 and Galway 112.5.
Eighty-one will go from acute services in hospital and primary care, 40 from community services, 34 from mental health and older people, 3.5 from corporate affairs, and 10.5 from Central Services and headquarters.
In total 116 clerical, management and administrative jobs will go, mostly clerical.
Forty-seven support positions will remain unfilled when current contracts expire, as will 2.5 nursing posts and 3.5 paramedical workers. These proposals are being made in consultation with trade unions and are "a work in progress", Dr Ryan said.
Many board members criticised the executive, saying they had not been kept sufficiently informed of the proposed cuts and that, in several incidents, the media had been informed before the elected members.
Dr Noel Flynn of UCHG said the health board was being landed with the Department's problems.
Clerical staff were needed to provide efficient use of appointments to patients, he stressed.
"Cutting back these posts will lead to a breakdown of communications and a certain amount of chaos. The nurses and junior doctors will not take over these roles."
Senator Ulick Burke of Fine Gael asked why the board had issued new administrative contracts since May when the Department first indicated it was seeking cuts in these areas.
However, Mr Martin Daly said this was not solely a board issue.
"If it was purely a Western Health Board problem we could squabble about the amount of money of involved. If it were purely about management we could squabble about management, but it's not. Other health boards are being affected as well.
"Politicians are the ones who raised expectations, promising everything at elections.
"They promised lower tax and better services and they don't marry unless there's a booming economy.
"Many politicians will have to start telling constituents that they'll have to pay more tax for their services."