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Opinion: November 2009

Actions by HSE threaten pay and patient safety

Terence Cosgrave | 27 November 2009 | Editorial

Terence Cosgrave warns that the HSE is making moves now that could cost both consultants and GPs in the long run, and force GPs to make judgements over the phone that could affect patient safety... Read more

Cracking the code of ethics

Dara Gantly | 27 November 2009 | Guests

Dara Gantly reports on the standards of professional practice and behaviour now expected from doctors — together with their responsibilities to patients — as laid down in the Medical Council’s recently released new Ethical Guide... Read more

HSE clamps down on non-compliance

Gary Culliton | 27 November 2009 | Guests

Gary Culliton writes that the HSE has identified a 'concerning' amount of consultants who are not complying with the agreed public/private ratio... Read more

A rebel yell of ‘secession’

Dr Garrett FitzGerald | 26 November 2009 | Garrett FitzGerald

Dr Garrett FitzGerald reflects on the similarities between the present crisis in public finances and the drastic health cuts of the 1980s. But he also wonders if individual hospitals might manage better with less... eh, management... Read more

Terminate someone else on 'Budgement Day'

Dr Mick Molloy | 26 November 2009 | Mick Molloy

Dr Mick Molloy says that Ireland is facing a crisis in its finances and everyone (without exception) must be prepared to suffer some cutbacks in their income and lifestyle... Read more

Pessimism is constant as the times change

G.B. | 26 November 2009 | The Inside Back

It’s almost December. Everything is still sh*t. That makes me 35 and 0 on my yearly predictions that everything will remain the same or get worse. I retroactively count the year I was nonverbal, since it would be reckless to... Read more

Self-evident truths are best when they suit your argument

26 November 2009 | Letters

Re: Self-evident when it suits! Dear Editor, Cathal Ó’Súilliobháin (‘Enjoy cocaine responsibly’; IMT, 13th November, 2009) refutes the statement (probably correctly) that ‘all illegal drugs are very dangerous’ (on the basis of the ‘overwhelming weight of scientific evidence’), and along... Read more

Mater not best site for NCH

26 November 2009 | Letters

Dear Editor, My father always held that the permanent government made all the decisions and the elected inexperienced government mostly implemented them. He held that on this basis, three Reverend Mothers are what the country needs to run it properly.... Read more

Use of Mecca image for IMT article was not appropriate

26 November 2009 | Letters

Dear Editor, I was very disturbed to see an article by Dr Garrett FitzGerald in Irish Medical Times (13/11/09). I will not comment on the contents of the article as these are the author’s own opinions. However, the selection of... Read more

Has Harney no sense of justice?

26 November 2009 | Letters

Dear Editor, Minister Mary Harney is suggesting a 50 cent charge per item on a prescription for Medical Card patients and has also suggested, in her role as a doctor presumably, that ten items per prescription are both excessive and... Read more

Newgrange still the oldest monument

26 November 2009 | Letters

Dear Editor, Re Tim O’Brien’s description of his trip to Berlin in today’s IMT: May I point out that the Altar of Zeus at Pergamum and the Isthar Gate at Babylon were not constructed at the same time as Newgrange.... Read more

Error led to birth of disabled child

Ed Madden, BL | 25 November 2009 | Guests

Ed Madden, BL, looks at a recent English Court of Appeal case in which an NHS Trust appealed against a decision of the High Court that it was partly responsible for a misdiagnosis that led to the birth of a... Read more

Dutch lessons in healthcare show way forward for reform in Ireland

Niamh Mullen | 25 November 2009 | Guests

Dr James Reilly visited the Netherlands to see how the best-ranked health service in Europe operates. Niamh Mullen reports... Read more

Lack of specialised stroke services

Brian Herron | 25 November 2009 | Guests

Brian Herron reports on the publication of the Irish Heart Foundation’s Stroke Manifesto, which contains 16 urgent proposals... Read more

More teens underweight than over

Niamh Mullen | 25 November 2009 | Guests

Niamh Mullen reports on Irish research which suggests more teenagers are underweight than overweight... Read more

Dealing with obstetric medical negligence claims

Aisling Gannon | 25 November 2009 | Guests

Aisling Gannon of Beauchamps Solicitors outlines the fundamentals of medical negligence in Irish law as established by the 'Dunne' case in 1989... Read more

Beating the 'Drumm' in Dromoland

Terence Cosgrave | 20 November 2009 | Editorial

Terence Cosgrave witnessed a command performance from Prof Brendan Drumm at the rural doctors conference, but despite the welcome improvement in communications there are still issues that must be addressed in primary care... Read more

Health Service is improving yearly

Prof Brendan Drumm | 20 November 2009 | Guests

Prof Brendan Drumm writes — in response to a letter in Irish Medical Times — that the health service is showing measureable improvement in many areas... Read more

Betsy! Betsy! Betsy!

Dr Garrett FitzGerald | 19 November 2009 | Garrett FitzGerald

Dr Garrett FitzGerald tells the story of a late, much-admired doctor and a patient who claimed that rural electrification had eliminated the need for men to go searching for wives... Read more

My first 'quick echo' in the ICU

Dr John Ryan | 19 November 2009 | Letter from America

Dr John Ryan told his attending he could see images in an echocardiogram, but when it came to his first night in ICU, he realised he needed to learn more about ultrasound technology... Read more

Why don't they make Rosebuds anymore?

G.B. | 19 November 2009 | The Inside Back

I went shopping today for a toy for my little boy — nearly seven months old. I wanted to get a little soft elephant or dog or tiger that played a cute, music-box nursery rhyme. I had a little elephant... Read more

Abolishing the OTC quango?

19 November 2009 | Letters

Dear Editor, I was surprised by the stance taken by you in your editorial piece ‘Raise Price, dump quango’ in Irish Medical Times (Friday October 30), in which you called for the Office of Tobacco (OTC) control to be disbanded... Read more

Important to inform public on clinical aspects

19 November 2009 | Letters

Dear Editor, In these days of organ donations it is also important to inform the public of the clinical aspects of organ donation, e.g. a patient must die in a general hospital and cannot die in nursing homes or in... Read more

Pharmaceutical company challenged NHS ruling

Ed Madden, BL | 18 November 2009 | Guests

Ed Madden, BL, looks at a recent English High Court case in which Bristol-Myers Squibb Pharmaceuticals challenged a decision by NICE to refuse to declare abatacept cost-effective... Read more

Sr Mary, Brecht and the collapse of Communism

Tim O'Brien | 18 November 2009 | Guests

Tim O'Brien went to Berlin in 1989 and left with uncertainty about the world following the defeat of Soviet-style Communism... Read more

Mediation has a role to play in medical disputes

Dr Simon Mills | 18 November 2009 | Guests

Dr Simon Mills explains the role of mediation in medical disputes. Part of the value of the process is the fact that all sides of the story get told... Read more

Getting off on the right foot

Dr Paul Stewart | 18 November 2009 | Guests

With plenty of personal experience to fall back on when a patient presents with problem feet, Dr Paul Stewart has some ‘shoo-in’ treatment advice... Read more

Irish doctor leading vaccine programme

Niamh Mullen | 18 November 2009 | Guests

Reporter Niamh Mullen speaks to Irish doctor Eilish Cleary who has been thrust into the limelight in New Brunswick, Canada, where she is Chief Medical Officer... Read more

Licensure in Canada: What is required?

Dr Amin A. Muhammad | 18 November 2009 | Guests

Dr Amin A. Muhammad urges doctors in Ireland to consider the benefits of living and working in Canada, where the standard of living is high and where there is a shortage of GPs and specialists... Read more

Remote 24/7 monitoring

Niamh Mullen | 18 November 2009 | Guests

Niamh Mullen reports on a digital plaster that allows doctors to monitor a patient's vital signs – and any worrying changes – remotely and around the clock, and deal with them quickly... Read more

NCHDs will be at the 'heart of Europe' - Morris

Dara Gantly | 13 November 2009 | Guests

Dr John Morris, IMO President and member of the Executive Committee of the PWG, tells Dara Gantly how European junior doctors are about to flex their political muscle in Brussels... Read more

Innovation in healthcare is for patients

Niamh Mullen | 13 November 2009 | Guests

Niamh Mullen reports that health research must shift its focus to help deliver better healthcare and contribute to the smart economy... Read more

Not everyone gets the best of everything

Terence Cosgrave | 13 November 2009 | Editorial

Terence Cosgrave says that it is important for all of us to imagine life from the perspective of a child, as sometimes the most important ideas and principles can only be appreciated when we examine things from their viewpoint... Read more

Two-tier system of beheading in Saudi

Dr Garrett FitzGerald | 12 November 2009 | Garrett FitzGerald

Dr Garrett FitzGerald recommends that you go to Saudi Arabia for at least a fortnight, otherwise you may miss a beheading attended by a blood-thirsty mob... Read more

More clarity needed around Fair Deal

Dr Mick Molloy | 12 November 2009 | Mick Molloy

Dr Mick Molloy argues that nowhere in the Fair Deal fine print is there mention of what happens to non-residential assets after three years, and this is a justifiable cause for concern... Read more

The Berlin Wall: my heroic part in its fall

G.B. | 12 November 2009 | The Inside Back

You’re nobody, in the world of journalism, unless you’ve been asked to contribute a column for a national newspaper in which you self-importantly and glibly describe your role - as a young, impressionable, socially-minded but ultimately naive reporter - in... Read more

'Worried women' breast cancer remark is misleading

12 November 2009 | Letters

Dear Editor, We would like to respond to your article about Prof Tom Keane and his comments that too many many ‘worried Women’ are presenting to symptomatic breast clinics and your headline that GPs refer too many breast lumps. In... Read more

HSE teams are more theory than practice

12 November 2009 | Letters

Dear Editor, I was interested to see an article on Primary Care Teams on the Irish Medical Times front page today (05.11.2009). We (in Clonakilty) recently had an introductory Primary Care Team meeting with the HSE. We don’t have a... Read more

Time for doctors to apologise to ME patients

12 November 2009 | Letters

Dear Editor, In the sentence, ‘Is it time to apologise to all the patients who were diagnosed as being somewhat cracked?’ (Retrovirus may shed light on mystery of chronic fatigue, Irish Medical Times, 29 October 2009), this 22-year veteran ME... Read more

Important decision on annual leave entitlement

Ed Madden, BL | 11 November 2009 | Guests

Ed Madden, BL, looks at a recent Labour Court case in which the Court, in following a ruling of the European Court of Justice, accepted that a nurse was entitled to accrue annual leave entitlement during a period of sick... Read more

Medical indemnity bill huge deterrent

Dr Simon Mills | 11 November 2009 | Guests

Fine Gael’s proposal to make medical indemnity compulsory for all registered and practising doctors is a laudable legislative move, says Dr Simon Mills... Read more

Enjoy cocaine responsibly

Dr Cathal Ó Súilliobháin | 11 November 2009 | Guests

Dr Cathal Ó Súilliobháin — a leading GP drug expert — says that policy on drug use has become based on myths that the public have come to accept and this thinking directs politicians and health managers - not common... Read more

Where did all those old crutches go?

Brian Herron | 11 November 2009 | Guests

Brian Herron reports on charitable efforts around the world for prosthetic limbs and asks if the HSE could make better use of 'one-use items'... Read more

Individuals must have a say in own death

Paul Murray | 11 November 2009 | Guests

Paul Murray discusses the Forum on End of Life in Ireland, part of the Irish Hospice Foundation... Read more

Irish cancer research could be set back a decade without a Biobank

11 November 2009 | Guests

Without investment now in a national system of biobanks – supported by a Government expert group and the National Cancer Strategy – Ireland could lose huge ground in research on cancer and diseases linked to specific genes, such as cystic... Read more

Gun money, war and 'farts for the bishop'

Pierce Grace | 11 November 2009 | Guests

Pierce Grace on the military and political history behind the birth of token coinage – where coins have more face than intrinsic value – in Ireland... Read more

Medical negligence — basic principles in law

Aishling Gannon | 11 November 2009 | Guests

Aishling Gannon of Beauchamps Solicitors outlines the fundamentals of medical negligence in Irish law as established by the 'Dunne' case 1989... Read more

Samples could solve sudden death riddle

Rory Hafford | 11 November 2009 | Guests

Rory Hafford examines a report calling for DNA sampling to be allowed as the clamour grows to tackle the growing problem of Sudden Cardiac Death... Read more

The energy of anger

Terence Cosgrave | 06 November 2009 | Editorial

Terence Cosgrave writes that a pre-emptive strike may express anger, but it will change absolutely nothing... Read more

HSE targets Dublin's 20 hospital CEOs

Dara Gantly | 06 November 2009 | Guests

With more than 20 hospital CEOs and management teams in the Dublin region, the HSE is looking to the capital to achieve savings under its transformation programme. Dara Gantly reports... Read more

Morphine side effects can indicate infection

Dara Gantly | 06 November 2009 | Guests

Research findings by the Palliative Care Team at Galway University Hospitals will be presented at a major conference this week, reports Dara Gantly... Read more

It's not the flying that I fear - it's the crashing

Dr Garrett FitzGerald | 05 November 2009 | Garrett FitzGerald

Dr Garrett FitzGerald tells us of the days of an early Ryanair route from Waterford and Luton known as the Vomit Comet, where he learned the secret to beating his fear of flight... Read more

Disability? What disability?

Paul Stewart | 05 November 2009 | Guests

Paul Stewart tells us how a renowned fundraiser helped send a boy born with one ear to America for treatment. It involved more than 50 sheep in a steeplechase... Read more

H1N1: for now, a health benefit to being over 65

Dr Mick Molloy | 05 November 2009 | Mick Molloy

Dr Mick Molloy expands on a number of his regular themes: nursing home care, the Government's preferred health system, reconfiguration, alcohol and the influenza pandemic... Read more

Jedward win would be 'disaster' — Simon Cowell

G.B. | 05 November 2009 | The Inside Back

It will come as little surprise to the regular readers of Inside Back that I have never watched an episode of the X-Factor. I do know, however, who Simon Cowell is. And today, as I write this, the big news... Read more

HPAT is worth the time spent preparing

05 November 2009 | Letters

Letter of the week Dear Editor, The views of Dr John Murphy, expressed in his editorial in the latest Irish Medical Journal and reviewed by Niamh Mullen (IMT Oct 30, 2009) on the introduction of the HPAT Ireland test for... Read more

IMT headline was misleading

05 November 2009 | Letters

Dear Editor, The headline on your front page of October 9, 2009 is misleading and is not substantiated by the detail provided in the article. It appears to me that your reporter has completely misinterpreted the information he obtained from... Read more

Olderpeopleshowusthatyoucanifyouwant

05 November 2009 | Letters

Dear Editor, On Monday 19th of October, I received a text message. It read: ‘Dimyfirstextmessageletmeknowifyougotitdad’ It was from my father. He’s 83 years old. I was speechless. I replied letting him know about the Zero for the Space. About 15... Read more

The HSE needs a Gandhi — not Disney

05 November 2009 | Letters

Dear Editor, Let it be said, Prof Brendan Drumm is a good man. So why is he so lacking in self-awareness that Nero-like he fiddles away singing for a E70,000 bonus while the health service burns uncontrollably throughout the land?... Read more

Professor's views on 'third-world' doctors are prejudiced

05 November 2009 | Letters

Dear Editor, I have to say that I had not heard of Prof Roy Pounder before (Irish Medical Times, October 16, 2009). The reason that prompted me to write this letter to you was my disgust and utter surprise at... Read more

Consultant told to extend career break

Ed Madden, BL | 04 November 2009 | Guests

Ed Madden, BL, looks at a recent High Court case in which the Court considered some of the rights and obligations of consultants and the HSE under the terms of the Consultants’ Common Contract... Read more

Virtual autopsy meets touch-screen technology

Brian Herron | 04 November 2009 | Guests

Brian Herron reports on a virtual-autopsy prototype that has gained interest around the world since being unveiled this year... Read more

Controversy surrounds link between cancer and insulin

Niamh Mullen | 04 November 2009 | Guests

Questions about the link between insulin and cancer risk in diabetics dominated proceedings at the 45th Annual Meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD). Niamh Mullen reports from Vienna... Read more

Electronic records to help predict domestic abuse

Niamh Mullen | 04 November 2009 | Guests

Niamh Mullen highlights research from Harvard on calculating the likelihood of future domestic abuse with patient history... Read more

The stent revolution rolls on

Rory Hafford | 04 November 2009 | Guests

Rory Hafford talks to Professor Declan Sugrue about the 20 years of stent technology in Ireland and its future direction... Read more