Vol. 488 No. 2
135 Mr. Shatter asked the Minister for Health and Children the action, if any, he will take to ensure that non-EU doctors are represented on the Medical Council, in view of recent reports of racism against non-EU doctors most notably in the Irish Medical Times; and if he will ensure that the council not only investigates complaints of racism but carries out an investigation to see if racism exists. [5882/98]
The vast majority of the membership of the Medical Council is elected by the constituent elements of the medical profession. The Minister for Health and Children appoints four members of the council to represent the public interest. The Medical Practitioners Act, 1978, stipulates that three of those must be drawn from outside the medical profession. Therefore, the scope for the Minister ensuring that any particular branch or element of the profession is represented on the council is limited. The primary function of the Medical Council is to protect the public from unqualified or incompetent doctors. The council investigates all appropriate complaints made to it, including complaints by one medical practitioner against another. I am confident that the council would diligently investigate complaints of racism or other forms of unprofessional conduct made to it.
136 Mr. Shatter asked the Minister for Health and Children the number of foreign doctors working in the Irish health services; their country of origin; whether they are consultants or non consultant hospital doctors; the percentage of the overall number of doctors in the State that are foreign doctors; and the way in which that figure compares with the position ten years ago. [5883/98]
The Department of Health and Children and the statutory agencies under its aegis do not routinely collect information on the country of origin of doctors working in the Irish health services. Doctors from EU member states are automatically entitled to be registered as medical practitioners and to practice here. However, the fact of being registered with the Medical Council does not necessarily mean that a doctor is actually working in Ireland.
The only group of doctors on whom such information is collected are non-consultant hospital doctors. In a survey conducted by the Postgraduate Medical and Dental Board on 1 October 1996 there were 986 non-EU nationals employed as NCHDs in the public health service. This figure constitutes 38 per cent of all NCHD posts. On 1 October 1988 there were 418 non-EU nationals in NCHD posts accounting for 23 per cent of all such posts.
