A&E crisis to top IMO conference agenda

The ongoing A&E crisis is among the main issues up for discussion at the annual conference of the Irish Medical Organisation, which gets underway in Killarney today.

The IMO and the Government are at loggerheads over the causes of the long-running overcrowding problem.

Minister for Health Mary Harney and the Health Service Executive both insist that there are sufficient beds in the Irish hospital system and want the crisis tackled by improving efficiency.

However, the IMO and all the other unions in the health service say the main cause of overcrowding is the Government's failure to supply adequate bed capacity.

Meanwhile, other issues up for discussion at the three-day conference include self-regulation for doctors and measures to curb growing levels of obesity among Irish people.