Community health: Nurses who speak out in defence of vulnerable patients should be able to do so with the protection of legislation, according to Ms Alice Leahy, director of the support organisation, Trust.
The co-founder of the social and health service for people who are homeless also encouraged frontline medical workers to have the confidence to stand up for those at risk in the health system.
She was speaking at the annual presentation of Miller Trust scholarships in Cork.
Nurses were working in a service where advancement was denied to those who spoke out in defence of vulnerable patients - the real outsiders in the system, Ms Leahy added.
"To make a difference in helping the most vulnerable, nurses must have the confidence and support to speak out especially in defence of vulnerable patients - the real outsiders in the system - and have the legal right to act as advocates on their behalf.
"Some might describe that as a 'whistleblower's charter for nurses' but I can think of no better group to be awarded that protection," she said at a presentation organised by the Institute of Community Health Nursing at the weekend.
Increased levels of bureaucracy were leading to a lack of consultation with frontline workers, causing complaints that the health service was insensitive to patients' needs, she noted.
"Conditions in the services for homeless people very closely mirror those in the health services.
"Unrealistic manager-driven service provisions can frighten and exclude the most vulnerable.
"We must also resist, especially those of us working with people who are invisible in society, becoming invisible ourselves, or nothing will ever change as we will not be taken seriously and our voices will not be heard," she said.
There was also a need for unity within the nursing profession. New barriers must not be created through a two-tier system between those who have degrees and those who do not have the new qualifications, Ms Leahy said.
"By challenging the system, health workers can stand up for patients' rights. Senior management not taking workers seriously saw a decline in the health system with cutbacks targeting the weakest patients.
"I would urge nurses in the community to take a leadership role in changing the perception of the traditional role of the nurse, especially as perceived by senior managers, and assert that we have a dynamic dual role as both healthcare professional and advocate in defence of the outsider when it is necessary," Ms Leahy said.