Management at Letterkenny General Hospital had to contact HSE bosses to get permission to buy a new kettle.
Staff at the surgical ward of Letterkenny General Hospital were left stuck for a cuppa when their kettle packed in.
But when they asked for a new one, they were told they would have to apply to management.
And due to cost-saving protocols, management at the hospital were forced to apply to outside Area Management.
The hospital has a budget of €100.4 million for the year ahead.
But staff have been told to cut-back on all purchases.
The HSE said their financial position is very challenging and significant efforts are being made to reduce expenditure in areas that do not impact on frontline services.
“As part of an ongoing cost containment programme, all areas of expenditure are under constant review and we have processes in place to ensure that all expenditure is approved accordingly – these processes apply to all purchases whether a single item or a large supply order.
“As part of these processes orders for non-clinical supplies and any area of discretionary spend are routed via the Area Management Office for approval before the expenditure is incurred. These include things such as stationery, crockery, furniture and hardware,” said a spokesman.
But Mayor of Letterkenny, Dessie Larkin, said the simple ordering of a kettle should need to take up valuable time by HSE managers.
“I can understand the HSE keeping costs down but the purchase of a kettle should not need all this authorization.
“Junior Minister for Finance Brian Hayes launched a purchase card scheme recently for Local Authorities to cover such items and cut out the need for a paper trail and additional work created by invoices and the like.
“This strikes me as the perfect candidate for this scheme and the simple purchase of a kettle should not need authorization from hospital management,” he said.
DonegalDaily.Com – Beware Cheap Imitations
Follow us on Twitter – https://twitter.com/DonegalDaily
Tags:
