Information overload appears to be the biggest trend of the moment with revelations regarding the upcoming Budget and behind-the-scenes workings of government at home and in Europe hijacking our attention spans at every turn. Instead of having to complain about being kept in the dark anymore, most of us are finding it difficult to keep on top of all the news happening around us, not only because of the sheer volume of same, but mainly because most of the news is not only bad, it is personal.
As the leaks surrounding the Budget cuts continue to flow, particularly in the areas of health, social welfare, and education, it is easy for people to miss vital pieces of information that will impact directly on their own budgets. With the rumours, announcements, and ‘kite-flying’ trials now coming thick and fast on a near-daily basis, confusion and helplessness is setting in. With so many up to their tonsils in debt, others watching life pass them by in a haze of unemployment, and yet more catching the first ferry or jet-plane ‘outta here’, life is passing by in nothing more than a daze these days.
This week’s HSE West meeting held in Merlin Park, Galway, was a case in point regarding information overload. Unlike so many previous meetings where sketchy details and half-promises of follow-ups were the order of the day, this time instead we were inundated with real updates. The fact that most, if not all, of these happened to be negative, suggests that this new, uncharacteristic, over-supply of news and information, is actually a strategic ploy. By overwhelming us with so much bad news on an incremental basis, eventually we will just sit dumb, sporting blank stares, unable to express even a whimper.
For instance, just for the (bulging ) record, at this week’s HSE meeting, we learned some of the following:
Increased supports are being given to hospitals to reverse the high level of absenteeism among staff in order to make a significant difference to growing staff shortages expected to peak next February - when large numbers are expected to retire for pension entitlement reasons;
Of a total of 19 junior doctors recruited (and paid ) to work for HSE West under the India/Pakistan recruitment programme, 11 are actually working at the moment, with the rest either studying to pass exams or sent home to commence exams, with a view to returning next January;
No new managers have been taken on in HSE West since the moratorium and there has been an 18 per cent reduction of senior grade managers since last year;
Energy costs at Mayo General Hospital for the first nine months of this year ran to €403,000, totalling €1.6 million in all Mayo primary and community care facilities combined; overall energy costs for HSE West to date this year amount to just under €20 million, and a new procurement policy and energy awareness campaign is now being rolled out to reduce costs;
While there is currently no formal incentivisation system in place to recognise performance of individual hospitals and health facilities, Mayo General Hospital was acknowledged at the November HSE West meeting as the current ‘A-Team’ role model for top management and performance;
The proposed Primary Health Care Centre at Kilcolman Road, Claremorris, which was to proceed as an initiative between the HSE and Mayo County Council, will not now be constructed due to lack of funding;
A total of €409,000 was spent by HSE West on advertising last year, mostly in relation to health promotion campaigns;
HSE West does not support the Government proposed ‘fat tax’ but recommends that sugar intake is reduced to prevent obesity.
Given that a total of 36 individual questions from councillors and almost a dozen motions were discussed at the four-hour HSE meeting, the above is just a taste of what happened.
Clearly headspace, the ability to simply think straight, never mind process information, is now the greatest commodity.
