Work limits ‘won’t hurt patients’

NEW work time limits, to apply to junior hospital doctors from tomorrow, will not be implemented at the expense of patient care, the Department of Health stressed yesterday.

Health Minister Micheál Martin has signed into law a directive limiting the working hours of the country’s 4,000 junior doctors to an average of 58 hours a week - a 30% reduction in the hours currently worked.

There is no agreement yet, however, between the department and the Irish Medical Organisation on rosters to ensure compliance with the European Working Time Directive.