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EU Directives.

Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 8 July 2004

Thursday, 8 July 2004

Ceisteanna (228)

Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin

Ceist:

222 Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin asked the Minister for Health and Children if comprehensive audits of night-time cover rotas in acute hospitals have been carried out in the context of the implementation of the European Working Time Directive. [20925/04]

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Freagraí scríofa

The European Working Time Directive, EWTD, requires a reduction in the average weekly working hours of non-consultant hospital doctors, NCHD, to 58 hours by 1 August next, and ultimately to 48 hours by 2009. My priority is to maintain safe, high quality services to patients while continuing to maximise compliance, currently without the co-operation or agreement of the Irish Medical Organisation. I do not under-estimate the challenges faced in this regard, some of which have been highlighted in my Department's submission to the ongoing review by the European Commission on the working time directive.

Management representatives have been ready and willing to participate in local working groups, representative of key stakeholders, to implement the directive's requirements. These groups would inter alia monitor progress in relation to the reduction in NCHD hours, examine skill-mix issues and undertake the type of research-audits on duties-services being provided by NCHD’s on-site and off-site on-call during day and night-time periods, as referred to by the Deputy.

The Irish Medical Organisation has refused to agree to the establishment of these groups. This position, coupled with their failure to substantively engage on the industrial relations issues has severely limited progress on implementation and prevented an agreed solution being reached. Notwithstanding the lack of co-operation by the IMO, every effort will be made, subject to maintaining safe patient care, to press ahead with implementation of the directive from 1 August.

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