Secondment, not pastures new: Will Tony Holohan still be a CMO? 

Tony Holohan's new role has been, by the admission of Trinity College Dublin, created with him 'in mind', but he will continue to be paid his salary by the Department of Health. Picture: Leah Farrell/RollingNews.ie

As nurses, hospital cleaners, and other frontline healthcare workers wait for their €1,000 pandemic bonus, Tony Holohan has been awarded a €187,000 cushy number.

Let's look at the facts. The new role has been, by the admission of Trinity College Dublin (TCD), created with Tony Holohan "in mind". But he will continue to be paid his salary by the Department of Health — around €29,400 more than the top rate on the TCD professor pay scale.

Before the appointment was made, TCD even interviewed Dr Holohan for a position that was specially created for one man and which it appears only one man could apply for.

There is no denying that Dr Holohan has gained quite the amount of experience when it comes to public health over the past two years, but there are many others working in the field who have also become household names since the pandemic. Should they not have been given a chance to apply?

When Dr Holohan's move to the newly created role of professor of public health strategy and leadership at TCD was announced on March 22, it was indicated that he would be leaving the chief medical officer (CMO) position, which he has held for 14 years.

"I would like to sincerely thank Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan today as he prepares to step down after more than two decades of outstanding and dedicated service to the people of Ireland in the field of public health," said Taoiseach Micheál Martin in a statement.

But in what has been described as a "most peculiar" development by the opposition, it has now emerged that Dr Holohan will instead take an indefinite secondment.

More questions than answers

This raises even more questions than answers.

The HR section of the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform website describes a secondment within the civil service as "a temporary arrangement which facilitates the release and movement of staff members for a specified period of time in a way which does not affect their employment status".

If a person is on secondment, it is anticipated that they will be coming back. Will it even be possible to fill the CMO position on a full-time basis if the current CMO has not technically left?

In a statement on Tuesday, the university described the post as "an open-ended secondment" and confirmed that Dr Holohan will remain on "the same terms and conditions as his existing contract".

"Secondments between organisations are a regular and common feature across the civil and public service to encourage inter-departmental and inter-agency co-operation and the sharing of knowledge and skills in the public interest."

The indefinite nature of the secondment is also questionable as the department website states that "all secondments will be temporary in nature, and in general will be for a period of six months up to a maximum of five years".

Sources have suggested that the Department of Health intends to advertise Dr Holohan's current role, which will become vacant in July, as it is not anticipated that he will return. Could this mean the department will have two CMOs on the books with only one carrying out the actual role?