19/02/2014 BBC Newsline

Good evening. Nurses who work in emergency care have told the Health

Minister that staffing levels are so low that they've been left feeling

battered, bruised and deflated. Just weeks after a major incident was

called at the Royal Victoria Hospital a special summit meeting

heard that the standard of care is so low that nurses are at risk of

being de-registered. Our health correspondent Marie-Louise Connolly

reports. While the ministers saw today's

summit as an opportunity to listen, some others likened it to him going

into the lion's then. Now they had got the Minister's attention, the

message was loud and clear. Staffing levels are so dire... The timing of

the summit was perfect. Since January's major incident was called,

the focus has been an staffing and the quality of care. Again, staff

feeling they are taking on more and more specialised duties, like

clerical duties and data entry, x-rays, and when we do that it means

we are being taken away from caring for patients. During a closed

session, nurses told the minister that the quality of care was in such

jeopardy, they were at risk of being deregistered. Despite 18 months of

crisis care headlines, Edwin Poots said until recently this message had

not been getting through. Do you acknowledge that perhaps this

listening exercise should have been done a long time ago? I would say

that the message for whatever reason has not got through to ourselves.

What are the solutions? According to local nurses who are being trained

in England, it is time Northern Ireland recognises their potential.

I am able to clinically assessed, treat and diagnose patients, I am an

independent prescriber, so I can prescribe treatment and drugs and

other care needed for a patient as they leave. If the emergency system

is to go -- system is to undergo massive change, it is essential that

alternative provisions in the community are in place. We have two

invest in those circumstances before we start this process. -- we have

to. Nurses are demanding action but they don't want to see a knee jerk

reaction. Instead the response should be measured so that the

system is sustainable in the long term.

Yesterday we brought you the story of the two families devastated by

the loss of their children from eating disorders. One viewer got in

touch to say she's been suffering from bulimia for more than 30 years

- and echoes the calls for better medical intervention. BBC Newsline's

Tara Mills went to meet her. Glenda Gregs has lived with an

eating disorder all of her adult life. Being overweight as a child

caught the attention of bullies. The fear of being fat is phenomenal even

now. Bulimia is much easier to keep it and in anorexia. Sufferers

maintain a healthy weight but there was nothing healthy about the

quantities of food involved. It is the whole cart, the whole loaf. Help

is available today in a way it was not back then. The eating disorders

Association runs classes to prevent problems starting before they begin.

It is a very bad thing to criticise each other for your shape. Students

admit there is a lot of pressure. We get judged on our appearance and

everybody wants to look better. It is just about keeping a positive

attitude about yourself but it is hard. Anorexia and bulimia are

complicated conditions that need time. Glenda would encourage others

to get help. A serving member of the Irish

Defence Forces has appeared before a court in Letterkenny charged in

connection with the discovery of a pipe bomb at an apartment in County

Donegal. Mark Cassidy, whose address was given as Grianan Vale in

Burnfoot, was one of two soldiers arrested yesterday. He's also

accused of possessing 87 shotgun cartridges. A second soldier is

still being questioned. Northern Ireland Electricity has

warned thieves they are risking their own and other people's lives

by chopping down electricity poles to get cables containing copper.

It's happened 15 times in the last six months and some homes have been

left without power. Our north-east reporter David Maxwell has the

story. A large engineering operation swung

into here yesterday after thieves broke down these electricity poles

in the early hours. They cut them with bow saws and then removed the

cable inside them containing valuable copper. The authorities say

thieves are playing a risky game because they have no way of knowing

if the cables are live. The thieves seem to be targeting morale areas.

There has been a spate of similar thefts. I have to be careful

because, having MS, I fall easily. My wife was out and I had to

struggle in darkness, I could have had an accident. In order to make

money the thieves will have to sell the cable to scrap metal dealers.

Some believe there needs to be greater controls on the industry.

If we had a law, scrap dealers would be legally obliged to back their

purchases. The authorities say that if thieves continue this reckless

activity lives could be lost. The Alliance Party MLA Anna Lo says

people who racially abused her online are bullies and won't silence

her. Ms Lo received threats when she said flags and paramilitary murals

should be removed from the route of the Giro D'Italia cycle race which

will be held here in May. They are not going to silence me,

absolutely not. I have received threats in the past on many

occasions and they are lees, really bullies, and they don't want anybody

to say any thing sensible against them. -- they are bullies. It is

important that we have started a debate about how to deal with these

murals. Tyrone are the Power NI McKenna Cup

champions following a seven-point victory over Cavan in tonight's

rearranged final. Cavan held the lead for most of the first half, but

Tyrone came back with this goal from Plunkett Kane leaving the scores

level going into the break. Tyrone went on to dominate the second half,

winning the game by 115 to 11 points.

The cricket team have beaten the West Indies in Jamaica in a Twenty20

title. It was the first of three matches between the countries.

I am afraid it will be quite a wet night, with a heavy rain warning for

parts of the West, Fermanagh and into parts of north Antrim. Towards

Belfast and the south-east there will be some wet weather but the

totals will not be as large. Possibly up to an inch in some

areas, possibly leading to localised flooding, and some strong winds at

times, especially on the east coast. The rain will be their first thing

tomorrow but it will move away through the second half of the

morning. Potential for flooding, particularly across parts of the

West. A couple of inches falling over the West of Scotland tonight

and an area of rain over many central and eastern parts of

Britain, gradually moving away to the North Sea by lunchtime. Over

parts of Ireland and western parts of Britain it writings up with some

sunshine but a lot of showers moving in as well. -- brightens up. It will

feel much colder compared to the last couple of days in Northern

Ireland, with the showers feeling rather wintry over the hills. On

Friday it will continue rather bright and blustery but some heavy

showers moving through from time to time, quite cold in the wind. The

next weather system moves in for the weekend, bringing some wet and windy

weather again. You can keep up-to-date with the

news online. In Can Wales bounce back

against in-form France? Italy host Scotland,

both looking for their first win.