Sir, – The article on the annual general meeting of the Irish Hospital Consultants Association (Home News, October 14th) reported on comments made by Dr Fergal McGoldrick and Prof Paddy Broe which criticised the modern role of nursing and specifically quoted Dr Fergal McGoldrick as saying "nurses were too posh to wash".
It is impossible for this organisation to ignore these grossly offensive, ill-informed and insulting comments about the pivotal, and essential, role that all nurses (and midwives) play in striving to maintain a healthcare system which is safe for patients.
It is quite obvious that these two consultants know very little about the world- class four-year undergraduate programme, which now leads to a degree in nursing/midwifery and the registered nurse/midwife qualification. In these programmes, which were recently reviewed and found to be of the highest calibre, there is the appropriate mix between clinical and academic learning. This ensures the graduating nurse/midwife has the clinical competence and skills, combined with the academic knowledge, to allow her/him function effectively in all areas of our overstretched health system.
The excellence of our undergraduate nursing/midwifery programmes is confirmed by the fact that our graduates are sought after, and highly regarded, in all other countries including the UK, Australia, Canada, the US. This confirms these respected health systems greatly value the performance and role of today’s Irish nurse/midwife.
It is therefore very disappointing to read such comments coming from these two consultant colleagues who really should know better. Indeed such gratuitous remarks only serve to confirm the perception, in some sections of society, that a small minority of consultants are so far removed, from the reality of the busy ward, that they simply do not know what is going on. – Yours, etc,
LIAM DORAN
General Secretary,
Irish Nurses & Midwives
Organisation,
The Whitworth Building,
North Brunswick Street,
Dublin 7.