SBP: Hospital Consultants break contract terms with no concequences

[mayoonmymind]

EVERYBODY knows that Irish consultants do exactly as they please.
Harney knew. Bertie knew. AND Haughey knew.
After all Haughey was the idiot who allowed hospital consultants use public beds for their private patients. Use the hospital facilities for these patients.ie. health board staff, Xray, physio, pharmacy, etc. and ALL free.
Why would they change now. They are treated as gods in this country. Some of them are rude arrogant and incapable of communicating with patients or staff. Courtesy & civility is not necessary if you are a consultant here.
I suggest they be sent to the UK to learn how to behave.
THEY WILL NOT LEARN THAT IN THIS COUNTRY.

[drzhivago]

EVERYBODY knows that Irish consultants do exactly as they please.
Harney knew. Bertie knew. AND Haughey knew.
After all Haughey was the idiot who allowed hospital consultants use public beds for their private patients. Use the hospital facilities for these patients.ie. health board staff, Xray, physio, pharmacy, etc. and ALL free.
Why would they change now. They are treated as gods in this country. Some of them are rude arrogant and incapable of communicating with patients or staff. Courtesy & civility is not necessary if you are a consultant here.
I suggest they be sent to the UK to learn how to behave.
THEY WILL NOT LEARN THAT IN THIS COUNTRY.

Sorry to let fact ruin a discussion BUT Hospital beds in public hospitals were used for private patients long before CJH

In fact the earliest titles for Hospital Consultants were Visiting Specialists as they were not employees of the public institution.

They were allowed to admit or had "privileges" to admit private patients as long as they also saw some public patients as a quid pro quo


To make this more efficient the department of health negotiated time periods when consultants made themselves available to public patients, over time this increased to the contracts we have now

There are some retired medics who never had a public salary but gave tremendous service to public patients yet in the current state would be labelled as greedy fat cats

[Merovingian]

Despite the vastly different supply and demand factors for different hospital consultant specialties,which in the US results in some making more than double others,why did the HSE introduce one size fits all salaries? Is this a common EU practice? If it is,it must be a throwback to Soviet era primitive communism. Of course,it a dream bargain for doctors,because under marginal economic theory,the salary needed to attract the consultant specialty in biggest demand must be paid to all. Only the public sector could come up with such idiocy. Imagine the response if a builder was asked by the union to pay all tradesmen the salary of the highest paid tradesmen,usually plumbers.

This is a good point. I've never understood this as a practising Consultant. The supply and demand for Consultant's varies between specialties. Its possible to become a Consultant in a few specialties with as little as 7 leisurely years post-grad experience. In others its 10-12 years including crucifiction along the way and after attainment of the post (Onerous on call rotas etc). To some extent the private practice earnings reflect this but not entirely. Also why not pay a junior consultant a lower salary and have increments. Here the salary is the salary and never changes. This leads to erroneous conclusions regarding comparisons with UK 'Oh in England the only earn 90K!' when the median salary is 130K sterling and many are on >180K sterling.

[mayoonmymind]

I did not say Haughy actually instigated the policy where public beds were used for private patients. He allowed it to continue when he was health minister, as did all the other morons who followed in his footsteps.

[mayoonmymind]

While the whole health system needs a complete overhaul, I am convinced that greed has taken over this country.
Developers, politicians, bankers, medical consultants and above all politically appointed CEO's have lost all decency.
To turn this around would take huge commitment from all sides and not just from the public service.