Hospital waiting lists now stand at 838,000 - an increase of 70,000 people in just one year, TDs are to be told today.
The Irish Medical Organisation (IMO) will be among a number of representatives appearing at the Oireachtas Health Committee this morning to update TDs on issues facing frontline health workers.
The IMO will say it is “deplorable” that it is almost one year since the first case of Covid-19 was diagnosed in the country and say no “substantial and systematic action” has been taken to date to address the “crisis” in recruitment and retention of medical expertise.
IMO reps will tell TDs as a result of this issue, stress and burnout is prevalent among the workforce and waiting lists have grown.
A major factor in contributing to consultants in recruitment and retention is down to “no concrete” measures taken to address the two-tier pay disparity among hospital consultants, the IMO will say.
They will point out that public health medicine is the first line of defence that we have against Covid-19 but we have 60 health specialists employed compared to 180 in Scotland and New Zealand, where the population is of a similar size.
TDs will hear that it is “beggars belief” and it should be a cause for “considerable shame” that these doctors had to ballot for industrial action during the pandemic.
The IMO will also say that the supply of medical specialists “simply fails to meet demand” and the vacant consultant posts or posts filled on a temporary basis has risen to 728.
And claim that the HSE estimates that we require a minimum of 1,600 additional hospital consultants to meet the needs of our current population.
Staffing shortages are impacting “significantly on the mental health” of nurses and doctors also due to the “inability” to get a proper rest, take proper breaks and “difficulties in accessing childcare,” the IMO will say.
