Vol. 510 No. 5
142 Mr. Allen asked the Minister for Health and Children if his Department has received a report from the medical manpower forum redefining the roles of all health care professionals; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23018/99]
143 Mr. Allen asked the Minister for Health and Children if he has received a report proposing a radical restructuring of hospital posts to allow nurses perform invasive surgery. [23019/99]
144 Mr. Allen asked the Minister for Health and Children if he has received a report from the medical manpower forum outlining new proposals for shift work for consultants in the years following their appointment and the development of consultant teams with senior and junior consultants in a bid to expand non-consultant hospital doctors' career structure. [23020/99]
145 Mr. Allen asked the Minister for Health and Children the plans, if any, he has to introduce category three consultant posts. [23021/99]
148 Mr. Allen asked the Minister for Health and Children if his Department has been in contact with the medical manpower forum regarding the situation where teaching hospitals are facing a serious shortage of consultants in general internal medicine due to increased specialisation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23024/99]
149 Mr. Allen asked the Minister for Health and Children the recent discussions, if any, his Department has had with the IHCA on medical manpower issues; and the issues discussed at that meeting. [23025/99]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 142, 143, 144, 145, 148 and 149 together.
The medical manpower forum is a major initiative to review medical staffing structures in public hospitals. Among the issues being examined are the provision of the highest quality of medical care to patients; addressing the imbalance in hospitals between career posts and training posts; addressing the gender imbalance at consultant level; the need to improve postgraduate medical training; and the provision of greater career opportunities for non-consultant hospital doctors.
As part of the consultative process, these items have featured in discussions with the medical organisations together with altered responsibilities for existing consultants; the introduction of a new grade of hospital consultant; and the need to provide greater on-site consultant cover in public hospitals, especially at night and at weekends.
