THE HSE’s controversial €60 million Skill programme aimed at providing development for lower-paid staff in the health service is not providing value for money despite providing some positive benefits, an unpublished internal consultant’s report has found.
The programme was established in 2005 to upskill healthcare workers and to date more than 10,000 people have taken part.
Around €59 million has so far been invested by the Government in the programme.
However, a new report drawn up by consultants Ernst and Young has criticised the value for money provided by the programme and has recommended reforms.
The Skill programme has been under scrutiny for some time after it emerged that some money which was provided by the Department of Health to the HSE as part of a general allocation for the scheme was paid into a bank account controlled by two figures associated with the trade union Siptu.
The trade union leadership maintained that it had no knowledge of this bank account.
It emerged as part of various investigations last year that money paid into the account was used, in part, to pay for foreign trips undertaken by trade union leaders and senior civil and public service staff.
Serious concerns were also raised in an internal HSE audit last year as to how aspects of the Skill programme was run.
The Ernst and Young report says the overwhelming feedback is that participants have gained in skills and confidence and are more professional as a result of attending the Skill programme.
The report states there are a number of inspiring examples of people whose lives have been transformed as a result of the learning which they received on the Skill programme.
However it says while there is evidence that individuals are developing and learning from the Skill programme, there is no evident link in place between that learning and team functions, organisational performance and corporate strategy in all instances.
The report says that where that link is in place, the Skill programme would appear to contribute to improved performance. It maintains that the standards and quality authority, Hiqa, has also accepted that the training has an impact on hygiene assessments which it has carried out.
“Our analysis is that the Skill programme does not provide value for money and will not provide value for money until that link is in place in all instances.”
“As one stakeholder commented to Ernst and Young: ‘training is not a panacea for systems failure’.
“One key indicator is that the average cost per participant of the programme is €5,559, but the average cost per participant who stated that they were able to transfer their learning back to the workplace is €9,756.”
The report says its research has also identified concerns about the programme’s efficiency, with a high number of participants withdrawing and 36 per cent of VEC participants taking more than one year to graduate.
