Special holiday cover agreed for striking doctors

SARS outbreak:  Special cover will be provided for striking public health doctors this Bank Holiday weekend to avoid any mismanagement of suspected or probable SARS cases which might emerge.

The general secretary of the Department of Health and Children, Mr Michael Kelly, said it had assurances from all of the health boards that cover would be provided, and key personnel would be contactable over the weekend. The Department's SARS incident room would also be manned over the holiday.

Mr Kelly said the public health doctors had "generally responded in emergency situations when that has been necessary". While this was the preferred option, if such help was not forthcoming health boards would have to do the best they could.

Poor Bank Holiday cover was blamed for the controversial handling of a suspected SARS case last month. A Chinese woman from the Guangdong province, where the pneumonia-like virus began last November, was released from the A&E department of St Vincent's Hospital, Dublin, on Good Friday with a mask and left to recuperate in a hostel in Dún Laoghaire over the weekend.

The chief executive officers of the health boards held a teleconference yesterday, facilitated by the Department, to discuss arrangements for this weekend and other issues.

The Government's Inter-Departmental group also met to discuss SARS, as did the Department's expert group on the virus, which was briefed by a specialist from the World Health Organisation, Dr Richard Pebody, on latest developments, and the possible threat from athletes travelling to the Special Olympics in Ireland next month.

Dr Jim Kiely, the Department's chief medical officer, said Dr Pebody did not offer any opinion on possible precautionary measures such as quarantine or travel restrictions. "It's not the role of the WHO to recommend to any country what to do." Its role was "to provide technical assistance to allow countries make their own decisions".

The Minister for Health, Mr Martin, said the technical advice given by Dr Pebody related to risk-reduction, minimisation and management around the Special Olympics.

He stressed the WHO felt confident that the measures it had re- commended to stop the spread of SARS had been effective.

There were only 35 probable cases in the EU, and all but one of these was imported. The single domestically-generated case occurred at Heathrow airport in London.

Mr Martin reiterated that the expert group would make a final decision on participation of athletes from SARS-affected areas in early-to-mid May. Urging people to be patient, he said he did not want to be "upturning decisions" as the global situation changed.

As for the industrial dispute, Mr Martin said he hoped there would be further talks between the two parties early next week. He did not intend to take part in "megaphone industrial relations negotiations".

The Department said only 20 calls were made to its SARS information helpline yesterday, compared to 65 last Tuesday.

Posters highlighting the symptoms of the virus have been erected at points of entry to the State, including small ports and airstrips,