Minister for Health Simon Harris has confirmed that in the last 24 hours, 24,000 people have contacted the HSE in response to the Government's call for additional medical help and assistance.
Earlier this afternoon, Harris announced measures to boost the numbers of Ireland's frontline medical personnel.
Minister Harris said that every newly graduated doctor will be offered an internship, with well over 1,000 people looking for one this year.
A nurses recruitment call throughout Ireland with the message “your country needs you” was also issued.
During an interview on RTÉ’s Claire Byrne Live Show, Harris said: “A huge amount of work is being prepared. Anyone who has a qualification and wants to work in the Irish health service will get a job… Your country needs you."
Aside from this, an official page on the HSE website has also been created for those medical professionals that are interested in signing up to help.
The page states: "We are asking all healthcare professionals from all disciplines who are not already working in the public health service to register to be on call for Ireland. We will be creating extra hospital and care beds and will need extra hands to provide the care that’s needed. We need your help to meet the challenge that’s ahead.
It adds: "Maybe you aren’t a healthcare professional, maybe you’re studying to be one, or maybe you have other skills to offer or just want to volunteer to do your bit if needed. Hopefully we won’t need to call, and if we do, we may not need every one of you. But knowing you are there if we do will make all the difference."
After the Department of Health recently confirmed 54 new cases of the virus in Ireland, with a total of 223 people now diagnosed here, it's clear that things things are going to get an awful lot harder.
During his St. Patrick's Day press conference, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said that 15,000 virus cases were expected by the end of the month.
Thankfully, it appears that Ireland's medical professionals are ready to face the challenge that awaits.
As Minister Harris said in the message below: "Ireland, I love you! What an amazing national effort."
He's not wrong.
In the last 24 hours, 24,000 people have contacted the @HSELive responding to our call for help! Ireland, I love you! What an amazing national effort. Thank you so much. Let’s keep at it. Go to https://t.co/FcV6QXIHGE and see if you can help #coronavirus #Covid19
— Simon Harris TD (@SimonHarrisTD) March 18, 2020
