BIG READ: 'Problem getting junior doctors in many smaller hospitals such as Clonmel'
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A TD has claimed in the Dail that "there is a problem with getting junior doctors in many smaller hospitals such as Letterkenny, Mayo, Drogheda or even Clonmel".
Cork TD, Colm Burke, raised the issue with the Minister for Health, Stephen Donnelly, at the Oireachtas Select Committee on Health.
Deputy Burke said: "I will move to the junior doctor issue, which has been raised. There is a problem with getting junior doctors in many smaller hospitals such as Letterkenny, Mayo, Drogheda or even Clonmel.
"Going outside the major centres such as Cork, Limerick, Galway and Dublin, many of the hospitals are finding it difficult to get junior doctors.
"In previous schemes there may have been a rotation of doctors from one hospital to another. They started at the bigger hospital and move to the smaller hospital.
"Many of the rotations did not work out and people stayed in bigger hospitals and never came to the smaller hospitals. If we are doing something with junior doctors, we must do it in a planned way so smaller hospitals do not lose out.
"On the junior doctor matter there is also the question of Stamp 4. This cuts across the Department of Health and others; it may take in three Departments.
"My understanding is a person must be in Ireland for five years and it was agreed that stamp 4 permits would be given to anybody who was here for two or more years. What progress has been made in implementing that?"
Stamp 4 offers the right to work without preconditions.
Doctors who have been working here for more than two years will immediately be able to access a Stamp 4 permit and spousal work rights.
In response, Minister Donnolly said: "There are several pieces to this. The first was to remove the ban on non-EU doctors training as specialists, and that was received well by those doctors.
"We are looking at the Stamp 4 matter, as the Deputy outlined, and it takes in the Departments dealing with health, justice and perhaps foreign affairs. I want to see this moved quickly.
"The Deputy has correctly point out that we have non-EU doctors who have had the training stipulation removed but are still caught with the Stamp 4 element. I will get the Deputy a detailed update on that.
"More broadly with the non-consultant hospital doctors we are increasing the number of training posts and we must increase it further.
"That partly involves increasing the consultant body workforce because there tends to be one-to-one training relationships there as well."
Deputy Burke added: "There are many people staying here in the hope they can get sorted out but they are finding if this is not sorted by July, for example, when they are applying for the next round of jobs, they will have to leave rather than stay. They will say they have been promised a resolution but eight months later it has not been delivered."