Ireland

Lack of medical screenings creating ‘bottleneck’ for revitalising Reserve Defence Forces

The Reserves number just 1,411 personnel or one-third of its intended strength, and many applicants ‘drift away’ due to long wait for screenings

Members of the Defence Forces take part in the St Patrick's Day parade in Dublin on Sunday. Photograph: Charles McQuillan/Getty Images

Conor Gallagher
Mon Mar 18 2024 - 16:36

A lack of qualified personnel to carry out medical screenings is stymieing efforts to revitalise the Reserve Defence Forces (RDF), which is currently at one-third of its intended strength.

The regeneration of the Reserves, which comprises the Army Reserve and Naval Service Reserve, was one of the key recommendations set out in the Commission on the Defence Forces’ 2022 report. It also recommended the creation of an Air Force Reserve and the doubling in size of the Naval Service Reserve.

On paper, there are 1,411 active reservists – 34 per cent of its establishment strength of 4,069.

Recruitment competitions for the RDF usually receive a healthy response and can receive more than 1,000 applications. However, efforts to increase the number of reservists have met limited success due to the long wait time for medical screenings for new recruits. Applicants must wait months, and sometimes years, for screenings.

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In the meantime, many lose interest in becoming a member and “drift away”, according to the Reserve Defence Force Representative Association (RDFRA).

Figures released to The Irish Times show that despite revitalisation efforts, just 89 inductions occurred over the 13 months starting in January 2023. During the same period, 129 left the RDF.

Reservists are expected to complete at least seven days of paid training and 48 hours of unpaid duty a year, although there is no penalty for missing this target.

In order to qualify, applicants must pass an interview phase, a fitness test, security vetting and a medical screening.

According to Neil Richardson, RDFRA’s general secretary, all of these stages except for the medical screening are usually completed without delay.

He said the Defence Forces’ medical branch lacks the capacity to screen reservists on top of its requirement to screen and treat full-time military personnel.

“Over the past several years, this lack of medical capacity has consistently resulted in high numbers of RDF applicants who have passed the fitness test, interview and security vetting essentially being bottlenecked when it comes to the medical screening phase,” Mr Richardson said.

“With the Defence Forces’ Medical Corps only capable of delivering a small number of medicals each week to a large number of waiting RDF applicants, some applicants end up waiting months or, in the past, even years to obtain a Defence Forces medical exam.

“The result is that a large number of applicants ultimately lose interest, drift away and discontinue the application process, leading to hundreds of applicants at the start of a recruitment competition turning into a few dozen left to be sworn in by the end.”

[ Tánaiste orders generals to increase Defence Forces recruitment targets for 2024 ]

Mr Richardson said he is “cautiously optimistic” new induction measures will have a positive impact.

A Defence Forces spokesman said 427 applications for the Reserve are currently “being actively managed through the induction process”.

He said 145 applicants are engaged in the medical screening process and a further 100 additional medicals have been scheduled for March and April.

Speaking in the Dáil earlier this month, Minister for Defence Micheál Martin outlined several measures under way to speed up medical screening for recruits.

A contract has been signed with a private medical company to carry out 600 induction screenings for RDF applicants every year for four years, he said.

Military management is also considering allowing applicants’ local GPs carry out preliminary screenings while they await a full Defence Forces medical.

“The strategic objective for the Reserve Defence Force is to create a reserve force that can seamlessly train, operate and deploy with the Permanent Defence Force, nationally and internationally,” Mr Martin said.

Conor Gallagher

Conor Gallagher

Conor Gallagher is Crime and Security Correspondent of The Irish Times

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