Nursing unions are going ahead with ballots on industrial action in accident and emergency departments despite a meeting with the Minister for Health yesterday.
At a meeting with the Irish Nurses' Organisation (INO) and SIPTU, Mr Martin said that today he would ask the CEO of each of the health boards to meet and engage with the nursing unions to discuss their problems.
A spokesman for the Department of Health said the Minister was anxious that everything possible should be put in place to prevent overcrowding in A&E departments.
This would involve discussions with consultants and GPs in their own areas to see how best to apply admission and discharge policies. He also announced an A&E national forum.
"The Minister has appealed to nursing unions to avert their industrial action and participate in the A&E forum in early March," the spokesman said.
However, last night Mr Liam Doran of the INO said: "The establishment of the forum, while welcome, will not of itself deflect us from continuing with our ballot for industrial action. We want to see results before we reconsider."
Mr Doran said the national forum would meet in two weeks' time to assess the process and to consider whether national initiatives might be required.
He said the INO had had a constructive meeting with the Minister, and members would be active participants in the two proposed initiatives.
"However, we have stressed to the Minister that the INO's campaign leading to industrial action will continue until our members on the ground are confident that these initiatives will not just be talking shops but are resulting in real and radical changes to the management of A&E services and eliminate overcrowding and excesive workloads on a long-term basis," he said.
Mr Oliver McDonagh, of SIPTU, said nothing came out of the meeting to justify them calling off their ballot. He said they wanted to see the proposed forum evolve into action groups which would have political input.
"As the process progresses, we will review the position," he said. The result of the SIPTU ballot is expected on Tuesday evening.
INO members in the adult A&E Department of Tallaght Hospital began a work-to-rule last Wednesday ahead of the ballots.
The INO has outlined a series of two- and three-hour strikes to begin on March 13th.