Moves to avoid cuts caused by shortage of hospital doctors

ACTION is being taken to avoid cuts in hospital services next month resulting from a shortage of frontline doctors, Health Minister Mary Harney has claimed.

The Irish Hospital Consultants Association (IHCA) has warned some accident and emergency, anaesthesia and obstetrical services might have to close. The consultant’s group said the Health Service Executive had recommended to the Medical Council that specialist doctor training posts be cut from 4,800 to 3,600 from the start of July.

Ms Harney said the matter was being dealt with by the department’s chief medical officer, the HSE’s director of clinical affairs and other members of the health authority. “I hope that the issues that have arisen will be resolved over the next few days,” said Ms Harney.

IHCA president, Dr Paul Oslizlok, said everybody knew qualified doctors who were training to be specialists carried out a very large part of the work of any hospital.

“With demand for services increasing, such a radical reduction in a vital area of hospital staffing would have immediate and far reaching effects. Some accident and emergency and obstetrical services may have to close,” he said.

“Warning bells have been ringing, particularly in small to medium sized hospitals, as the sudden drop in the number of doctors is predicted to force closure or curtailment of some acute hospitals services.

“The response of the HSE to this well-flagged crisis has been disorganised and ineffective,” he said yesterday.

Dr Ozlizlok said the 1,200 doctors who did not manage to secure training places would be free to practice medicine without having their competence formally certified.

The IHCA is to meet Ms Harney today when they will stress the need to protect the public and, if necessary, that she must amend the Medical Practitioners Act before the end of the month.

The association has already outlined its concerns during a meeting with HSE chief executive, Professor Brendan Drumm.

A HSE spokesperson said that, following consultation with the department, Medical Council and the Forum of Irish Postgraduate Medical Training Bodies, it had accepted the proposal that, where possible, all existing training posts would continue to be recognised as such for one further year.

The spokesperson said contingency plans were being prepared in each of the four HSE regions to cope with any problems as they arose. “The HSE’s priority is to maintain patient services throughout this period,” the spokesperson stressed.