The Psychiatric Nurses Association (PNA) has deferred its industrial action.

Nurses belonging to the PNA had stopped working overtime from Thursday.

It was in response to what they said was a lack of any meaningful progress in five months of talks to resolve the recruitment and retention crisis in mental health services.

The association said nurses were "irate and frustrated" over this latest action, having suspended their strike action five months ago.

But in a statement on Friday, the Health Service Executive (HSE) said it welcomed the PNA's decision to defer the overtime ban.

It added that the HSE was looking forward "to engaging with the PNA in the coming week with a view to resolving the issues under discussion."

The PNA says mental health services are struggling with staff shortages.

In some services, these shortages amount to over 20% - while nationally, there are 700 vacancies in mental health services.