Complaints against doctors up by 12%

COMPLAINTS against doctors increased by about 12% last year, new figures from the Medical Council show.

A total of 342 complaints were made about doctors to the regulatory body for the medical profession last year compared with 305 in 2005. A little less than a third of the doctors against whom complaints were made were medical specialists.

There were 26 doctors who received more than one complaint, of which five were the subject to a fitness to practise inquiry.

Most of the complaints related to treatment (99), followed by professional standards (93) and failure to communicate or rudeness (28).

Fifteen of the complaints were categorised as alcohol/drug abuse/irresponsible prescribing, while 10 were about the doctors failing to attend to a patient.

There were 17 complaints made about the failure of a doctor to supply medical records.

A mere 32 of 304 complaints considered by the council’s fitness to practice inquiry last year resulted in an inquiry. This compares with just 19 inquiries called in 2005.

Sanctions were imposed against 19 doctors last year — three were erased from the register, one was suspended, six had conditions attached to their continuing to practise, five were either advised, admonished or censured while four had no sanction imposed.

There are 15,512 registered doctors in Ireland, of which 9,998 are men and 5,524 are women. 792 hold temporary registration.

Research commissioned by the Medical Council has found that dissatisfied patients are unlikely to complain and there is a low level of awareness of the agencies responsible for dealing with complaints against doctors.

President of the Medical Council Dr John Hillery said the regulatory body was obliged under current legislation to consider every complaint made and decide whether, on the face of it, there was a case to answer.

But under the new Medical Practitioners Act, the council’s new preliminary proceedings committee will be able to decide whether complaints should be dealt with by another route.

Complaints can be referred to another body such as a hospital’s complaints committee, health committee or mediation.

“The problem at the moment is that there is only one route for a complaint and if it does not go down that route, that is the end of the matter,” he said.

President Mary McAleese has signed the act into law, however the commencement date had to be set by the Minister for Health.

Meanwhile, Mr Hillery went on to say that doctors aged 90-plus could still practise medicine if they are registered but said under the new register, doctors would have to be involved in competence insurance.