Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 13 July 2022
290. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Defence if it is intended that new direct entry medical officers in the Defence Forces will be entered into the specialist division in general practice; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38257/22]
View answerThere are currently two entry streams by which Medical Officers are recruited into the Defence Forces, namely Direct Entry and via the Military Medicine Training Scheme.
I am informed that there is currently no designated pathway for Direct Entry Medical Officers to be entered onto the Specialist Division of the Medical Council’s Register of Medical Practitioners in General Practice. Some Direct Entry Medical Officers may join the Defence Forces as specialists already, while others may choose to apply to the Medical Council to be entered onto the Register as specialists.
The Military Medicine Training Scheme does lead to Medical Officers being entered onto the Specialist Division of the Medical Council’s Register of Medical Practitioners, in both Military Medicine and General Practice. I am informed that a new intake via this stream is currently on hold pending the completion of a joint civil-military review of the scheme and the resolution of a number of outstanding administrative issues.
