Retired nurse "Mary" worked in the Irish mental health care system for over 30 years and she is now speaking out. She says her opinion is that the unions have a disproportionate power over the services that are delivered and that the focus has shifted from being in favour of the patient to being in favour of staff needs. She claims that new initiatives are "stifled" by unions and that it is "never about the patient". She also alleges that if managers don't agree with union positions on matters, they can be discredited by unions via anonymous complaints. She spoke to the Joe Finnegan Show this morning.