In the North there is a less drastic shortage of consultant neurologists: one per 250,000 people. "That means 6.5 consultant neurologists for a population of 1.6 million," says Dr Victor Patterson, consultant neurologist at the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast and Dean of the Irish Institute of Neurology and Neurosurgery. The problem is how to distribute these neurologists (one of whom works part-time) between 16 small hospitals. "We do tele-linkups all the time," says Dr Patterson.
He notes that 20 per cent of emergency medical admissions involve neurological problems such as dizziness, headaches, chest pains and strokes. "These people need to be provided for," says Dr Patterson. "Symptoms such as headaches, tingling and strange pains may mean MS, or my simply be stress-related. A qualified neurologist can tell the difference, whereas with a non-specialist, a lot of time and money can be wasted on tests." Because of the Troubles in the North, the incidence of stress-related neurological problems is particularly high. There is also a slightly higher than average incidence of MS in the North, although the reason for this is unclear.