Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 21 November 2019
153. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Health the steps he is taking to address the severe shortage of hospital consultants by which there are over 500 current vacancies; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48423/19]
View answerThe Government is committed to moving to a consultant delivered service. Notwithstanding the fact that consultant numbers in Ireland are low by international standards they continue to increase each year. At the end of September 2019 there were 3,190 whole time equivalent consultants working in the public health services. The number has increased by 125 in the 12 months to the end of September and by over 550 in the past 5 years. While it is not ideal, the majority of consultant posts not filled on a permanent basis are filled by locums or temporary staff to support the delivery of essential services.
The Government is aware that there are difficulties in filling certain consultant posts, particularly in smaller hospitals and in certain specialties, as identified by the Public Sector Pay Commission. The Commission in its Report published in September 2018 identified difficulties in attracting consultant applications for many posts at present and acknowledged that the pay rates for new entrants had been highlighted as a factor in this. The Commission proposed that the Parties to the Public Service Stability Agreement jointly consider what further measures could be taken, over time, to address the pay differential.
More recently, I published the Report of the De Buitléir Group in August. The Group was established to examine how to give effect to the Sláintecare recommendation on the removal of private practice from the public hospital system. My Department, together with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and the HSE, recently met with both the IMO and the IHCA regarding Sláintecare, the De Buitléir Report and health sector reform and will be seeking to continue to engage with both bodies.
