IHCA with criticism…… 900 GP vacancies in Ireland
Dublin: Even as hospitals are under pressure during the winter crisis, there are hundreds of doctor vacancies to be filled. Across the country, 9 lakh people are on the waiting list for GPs. At this point, 900 permanent posts must be filled.
For the past decade, organisations such as the Irish Hospital Consultants Association (IHCA) have been calling for the issue to be addressed, but there is widespread criticism that the government is unwilling to do so.
The contract is finalised… as proposals.
Meanwhile, Health Minister Stephen Donnelly announced the completion of a new public-only hospital consultant contract. After a year and a half of negotiations, independent chair Tom Mallon finalised the deal.
The minister said that these proposals will now be considered by the representative bodies. The minister said that it will come into effect in the new year.
All new members and existing contract holders can sign up to the government-approved contract. Consultants are expected to work up to 37 hours per week under the new contract.
Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Also allowed to work on Saturdays. This is the first time that Saturday has been included in the normal working week for consultants.
Important provisions of the contract.
Health Minister Stephen Donnelly stated that the new consultant contract would allow GPs to work more hours in operating rooms and diagnostics departments. According to the minister, the agreement will help recruit and support more doctors. Waiting lists and the trolley crisis could be permanently resolved.
Salary will increase.
The new contract specifies a salary range of 2,09,915 to 252,150 euros. There will also be an on-call allowance of up to $38,000 per annum. A fund of 20,000 euros will be made available to finance medical education for doctors.
Consultants will not be permitted to treat private patients in public hospitals under the new Slaintecare contract.
This is to ensure that current patients receive treatment. Consultants, on the other hand, can treat private patients in their own time.
IHCA with criticism.
Waiting lists, according to the Irish Hospital Consultants Association, can only be reduced if critical issues like GP vacancy filling are addressed. A new deal without addressing this issue will do no good.
The association said the numbers on the waiting list could only be reduced if the recruitment-retention problem among GPs was resolved. The Irish Medical Organization said it would respond to the deal in January.
Irish Samachar English News
Kindly click the link below to join WhatsApp group chat to get important news and breaking news from Irish Samachar.
Comments are closed.