Vol. 521 No. 1
180 Mr. Allen asked the Minister for Health and Children the steps he will take to deal with a chronic shortage of anaesthetists in the north east which has threatened all surgery in a number of hospitals and the closure of an intensive care unit. [16441/00]
The provision of hospital services in the North Eastern Health Board area is the statutory responsibility of the North Eastern Health Board in the first instance. However, I understand from the North Eastern Health Board that it has a full complement of consultant anaesthetic staff. The board is exploring all possibilities with a view to having a full complement of staff from July 1 next.
Health service employers and the Health Service Employers Agency are continuing to monitor the take-up of employment offers made to non-consultant hospital doctors, NCHDs, for 1 July 2000. The situation is likely to remain fluid for a number of weeks to come as an NCHD may have an offer of employment from more than one hospital. Hospitals are exploring all options in an effort to ensure that essential posts are filled.
With regard to the decision of the Medical Council to introduce an examination for non-EU nationals entering the health services here I would like to state that the Medical Council is an autonomous statutory body established by the Medical Practitioners Act, 1978. Its functions include registering all medical practitioners in this country, fitness to practice and ensuring that junior doctors working in our health service have received a very high standard of training and education. Its membership is made up largely of medical professionals. It is also important to note the Medical Council here works independently of the General Medical Council in Britain.
The Medical Council decided some years ago to introduce an examination for doctors outside the European Union seeking temporary registration in Ireland. Overseas doctors, EU and non-EU, account for about a third of non-consultant hospital doctor posts. These doctors have played and I am sure will continue to play a very important role in providing a quality service in our hospitals. This assessment procedure was introduced by the Medical Council to ensure that all medical trainees, both EU and non-EU nationals, are of the highest standard.
The Medical Manpower Forum is addressing the issue of medical staffing in hospitals. The forum will issue its first report shortly and its recommendations will address this issue.
