Overworked juniors are ‘falling asleep at wheel’

Overworked junior doctors are falling asleep in their cars and risking major accidents because of the excessive hours they are being forced to endure.

Senior officials in the Irish Medical Organisation have raised concerns over the safety of both the public and their members as a result of single shifts lasting up to 56 hours, which are in breach of EU rules dating back almost 20 years.

Speaking at the union’s AGM in Killarney, Co Kerry, the non-consultant hospital doctors group chair and GP trainee at Sligo General, Mark Murphy, said patients are being put at serious risk because of the shift-length crisis.