NURSES AT NAAS General Hospital have suspended their industrial action after “lengthy negotiations” which “intensified” this evening.

Members of the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) had been engaged in a work-to-rule industrial action at the hospital since Monday over “unacceptable and unsafe staffing deficits”.

It said there had been a failure to fill maternity leave vacancies, as well as a failure to increase staffing to meet a more than 25% increase in Emergency Department attendance at the hospital in the past three years.

In a statement this evening, the union said 60 vacant nursing posts would immediately be backfilled and an additional 30 would be created to “cover additional services”.

It added: “A full review of all nurse staffing will begin at the hospital this week against the safe staffing framework.”

The statement added that the Dispute Committee at the hospital has recommended members are balloted on the proposals next week.

At a protest on Friday afternoon, INMO general secretary Phil Ni Sheaghdha said the “very busy” hospital had seen a “massive increase” in Emergency Department attendances.

The area, which is seeing population growth generally, also contains nursing homes that are increasingly dealing with people from Dublin that rely on Naas General Hospital when they become unwell.

She told the Press Association: “All in all, the staffing has not kept pace with the population and the demand on services in the hospital.”