All over the country, while most people cosied up indoors enjoying ‘Christmas Part 2’, others were lacing up their boots and trudging to work because they had no other option.
With giant snowmen, snow angels and hot chocolates filling our newsfeeds all week, it was easy to forget the tremendous struggles the snow caused for many.
Small businesses crippled by lack of customers, elderly people housebound and alone, and many others.
Now, an Irish Psychiatric Nurse has gone viral after sharing her Storm Emma story, reaching out to Health Minister Simon Harris to condemn the treatment of mental health in Ireland.
In a letter posted on Facebook and shared more than 12,000 times, Aoife Butler wrote:
‘Dear Simon Harris,
More examples of those who braved the weathers to walk to work.
But this picture tells more.
‘This a picture of 4 Psychiatric Nurses. All in our 20’s.
Half of us are planning to leave the country in January 2019. To nurse in other countries, where our quality of life will be much better.
Because you see, yes we are well educated nurses with well known degrees.
But we are also the kind of people, who even though our pay does not exceed our work, and the benefits we get are not the same, we put on our boots and walk miles to work to prioritize patient care.
‘This is a picture of 4 of the many nurses in the Waterford services that are also in the middle of industrial action to highlight the poor working conditions, with over crowding and under staffing.
‘This is a picture of 4 Psychiatric nurses who had to walk to work because being psychiatric nurses we are bottom of the pile in regards to lifts by emergency personnel, because for some unfortunate reason people must think, peoples mental health goes away when the snow comes!
Or maybe we are not seen as “real nurses”.
As a newly qualified nurse I’ve learned so much already about this country and how we are valued.
But STILL, We put on our boots and WALK to work.
THESE ARE THE KIND OF NURSES YOU ARE LOSING
TO OTHER COUNTRIES!!
Many in the comments echoed Aoife’s sentiments, with one user writing:
‘Well done to you all, you all work so hard and don’t get the RESPECT from our government, Sincerely our loss and another countries gain’.
Another added: Your dedication is amazing, shame on the treatment yer getting, government should hang their heads in shame, mental health is so prominent.
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