All they want for Christmas is an intern job. Not much to ask the Minister for Health considering it has been so expensive training them in Ireland but it seems as if yet again large numbers of medical graduates are being encouraged to emigrate before they have even worked in the Irish healthcare system. As [...]
Christmas is rapidly approaching, and with it comes worsening weather, queues, traffic, and stress levels. In hospitals around the country patients are imploring their doctors to let them leave. At the other end of the spectrum, there are elderly patients for whom admission is the only solution to a plethora of family and social problems. [...]
The Christmas I will never forget and which is burned into my memory is the one I spent in my very first job after I qualified. I wanted to stay in Ireland, of course, but that was not an option and when you don’t have any money, life is simplified and options limited. So, when [...]
The re-election of Dr John Hillery for another term as president of the Medical Council could suggest that there may be an increasing recognition among doctors that a more robust and resilient regulatory regime is both necessary and inevitable. Some doctors may remain gravely concerned about any dilution of the tradition of self-regulation, and any [...]
Doctors all over the country will breathe a sigh of relief when 2006 draws to a close. It has been another eventful year for the health services, dominated by negotiations for new consultant and GP contracts; MRSA and hygiene standards in hospital; the publication of Judge Maureen Harding Clarke’s report into peripartum hysterectomy at Lourdes [...]
Dear Editor, The Irish College of Psychiatrists has broadly welcomed the statement by Minister O’Malley, announcing additional funding of €25 million for the ongoing implementation of ‘A Vision for Change’, and including the funding of a National Service Users Council. However, we are very disappointed with the provision of just €7.95 million for the Child [...]
Dear Editor, I wish to respond to a very interesting letter by Dr Liam Twomey (IMT, 1 Dec 2006). The letter outlined the lack of neurology services available for GPs and patients in Ireland at present due to long waiting lists to see a consultant neurologist. I would like to inform Dr Twomey and all [...]
Dear Editor, The Office of Tobacco Control welcomes the announcement that from 31 May 2007 it will be illegal to sell cigarettes in packs of less than 20. The sale of confectioneries that resemble tobacco products will also become illegal from that date. The decision to proceed with the abolition of 10 packs, combined with [...]
News Editor Glenn Taylor believes doctors do not need to be defensive or tightlipped with the media about their earnings and advises a proactive approach It’s that time of year again. No, not the uniquely American celebration that is Thanksgiving or the interminable prelude to Christmas. It’s the time of year when the Government releases [...]
Dear Editor, The horrors at Leas Cross happened, and could be happening in other nursing homes around the country, because of the failure of the Government and its agencies. The Government that failed to put in place a strong, independent inspectorate with the power to shut down bad nursing homes and continued to transfer vulnerable [...]
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