Ireland is not an attractive country for nurses or midwives to work in, according to the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation.

Members of the union, at Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda will engage in a work-to-rule today.

Staff at the hospital say that the action is in response to the staffing shortages that exist at the facility.

Yesterday, the HSE confirmed that 144 nursing posts in Emergency Departments across the country will be filled in the coming months.

However, the INMO’s Tony Fitzpatrick said that that nurses will not stay here unless they are offered better packages.

“There’s a significant problem with staff leaving the service and going to either the private sector or overseas, especially to the NHS, who are offering more attractive … recruitment packages, better terms and conditions of employment, better career pathways,” he said.

“It’s time the Government and the HSE woke up.

“They need to recruit all the graduates that qualify in August and September this year from the nursing colleges.”