Instead of adopting a head-in-the-sand approach, and dodging questions in the Dáil, the Taoiseach needs to get a grip on this
Neither the Taoiseach nor the Health Minister appear to be aware of major breaches of the public-only consultant contract in hospitals across the country, according to Social Democrats health spokesperson Pádraig Rice.
Deputy Rice said:
“It was revealed at the weekend that consultants on public-only contracts, who deliver babies for private patients in the Rotunda at the weekend, are routinely gifted with sums of up to €1,500 by consultants contracted to do that private work.
“However, that practice is not confined to the Rotunda. It is happening at Cork University Maternity Hospital (CUMH) too, where consultants on public-only contracts are provided with financial gifts by their colleagues if they deliver babies for private patients.
“Meanwhile, there are also major issues at University Hospital Galway. That hospital has a deal in place to do lab work for a private hospital and consultants, on public only contracts, are being told by management at the hospital to do lab work for private patients.
“This is not something consultants want to do, but pressure is being applied by management to spend time – which should be used examining samples for public patients – on private work.
“This is leading to major delays in the processing of samples for public patients at the lab, including delays in public patients getting cancer diagnoses. Delays have now gotten so bad that the hospital is outsourcing samples, for both public and private patients, to a commercially-run lab.
“When asked a series of questions about this in the Dáil today, by Social Democrats deputy leader Cian O’Callaghan, the Taoiseach talked down the clock. However, these questions are not going away.
“Eventually, the Taoiseach said he did not know that consultants were gifting payments to each other, at either the Rotunda or CUMH. He also said he didn’t know if the Revenue Commissioners were investigating this practice.
“It is hugely concerning that the Taoiseach, and the Health Minister, are in the dark about these serious breaches of the public only consultant contract. They don’t seem to know what is happening on the ground in various hospitals.
“It is evident that individual hospitals are implementing the public-only contract on an a la carte basis, choosing to do it in whatever way they want – even if that means consultants, on public only contracts, continuing to do private work.
“There are also serious issues about the gifting of up to €1,500 to consultants, to deliver babies, given these payments are being made tax free. The practice also raises issues about insurance and whether insurers are being billed for work consultants never did.
“Instead of adopting a head-in-the-sand approach, and dodging questions in the Dáil, the Taoiseach and the Health Minister need to get a grip on this.
“The Health Minister should come to the Dáil and answer questions about all of this at the earliest opportunity.”