The Irish Medical Organisation (IMO) is to ballot the State's 250 public health doctors on strike action.
The form of industrial action will be determined after the result of the ballot, which takes place during the next 10 days. The IMO is recommending a vote for action.
The chairman of the IMO public health committee, Dr Fenton Howell, said yesterday that stalled negotiations with the Department of Health centred on the non-implementation of the Brennan report, which examined the provision of medical services involving public health doctors.
"Following protracted delays on the part of the Department of Health and Children, it is evident that public health doctors are not a priority for the Department and therefore we are here today to discuss our plan to ballot for industrial action," Dr Howell said.
"Public health doctors have been providing emergency out-of-hours service on a goodwill basis for years and the Department has been abusing this goodwill," he added.
The doctors in question are involved primarily in the management and control of infectious diseases such as meningitis, tuberculosis, the winter vomiting bug, food poisoning and bio-terrorism threats, Dr Howell said.
"Since September 11th the reality is that we live in a different world and any bio-terrorist or nuclear threat will necessitate the specialist services of these doctors. This needs to be structured and planned," Dr Howell said.
He concluded: "The Government has no plan which involves emergency contact with these doctors. They expect us to continue to be available 24/7, with no plan as to how we are to be contacted or how a structured response can be organised in the event of an emergency outbreak."