The health service is bracing itself for a wave of industrial unrest by three groups of healthcare professionals. The action, threatened by hospital consultants, public health doctors and nurses will put further pressure on the Tánaiste and Minister for Health, Ms Harney.
She is already facing criticism for not moving more swiftly to resolve the crisis is hospital A&E units, where upwards of 200 patients are on trolleys almost every day.
Some 1,700 hospital consultants who are members of the Irish Hospital Consultants Association (IHCA) will be balloted on industrial action in coming days, it was decided at a meeting in Dublin yesterday. It is expected they will vote in favour of action to start on March 14th.
More than 89 per cent of the 600 consultant members of the Irish Medical Organisation (IMO) have already voted in favour of industrial action. The IMO and IHCA are co- ordinating their campaigns, which will see up to 50,000 elective operations and outpatient appointments for public and private patients cancelled every week. Only emergency cover will be provided during the strike.
Also over the weekend, at a national meeting in Dublin of public health doctors, it was decided that unless the new Health Service Executive (HSE) urgently provided them with certain guarantees, they would also strike. The doctors, who are members of the IMO, work with the recently abolished health boards but claim they have not yet been consulted on whether they will have to relocate under the new health service structures.
SIPTU's 6,000 nurses have threatened to take industrial action unless Ms Harney comes up with "real and lasting solutions" to the A&E crisis.
IHCA members meeting in Dublin yesterday expressed anger that 12 months after the introduction of a new medical insurance system, there is still no agreement on who will cover them for incidents in the past for which they could still face claims. One of their former insurers, the British based Medical Defence Union (MDU), is refusing to meet several such claims, claiming it cannot afford them.
Since a new State insurance scheme for consultants was introduced on February 1st last year, 25 consultants have been refused cover by the MDU. One is due in the High Court tomorrow where he is being pursued by his health board for half of the €4.45 million awarded in cerebral palsy case against the North Western Health Board.
The Tánaiste has said no consultant will be left uncovered but the IHCA and IMO say her letter to this effect is not legally binding.
Solicitors from the Attorney General's office will meet legal representatives for the IHCA and IMO on Wednesday.
Ms Harney's spokesman said last night she was disappointed at the decision by the consultants and said the real sufferers would be patients.