Hospital ‘can’t explain’ €700k in top-up fees to 5 staff

A leading hospital cannot explain why five senior officials received almost €700,000 in non-salary, “top-up” fees — with “inconsistent recollections” from board members over who approved the deals.

A major audit of the unusual spending has found Tallaght Hospital is unable to provide any documents showing why the significant amount of money was handed out between 2005 and 2010.

The Ernst and Young financial investigation was launched last year after the Health Information Quality Authority raised concerns over the payments.