There has been a marked increase in the number of complaints made to the Medical Council about doctors over the past five years.
That is according to the council's latest five-year term report which states that 1,231 complaints were made to the council between 1999 and 2003.
This represents a 30 per cent increase in the number of complaints made to the council about doctors over the previous five years.
Most complaints were in respect of treatment given and the majority were against general practitioners. GPs accounted for more than 600 complaints made, hospital consultants more than 450 and non consultant hospital doctors (junior doctors) had 85 complaints levelled against them.
The council, which adjudicates on complaints made by patients against doctors, also dealt with complaints concerning doctors' alleged abuse of alcohol or drugs, irresponsible prescribing, deputising arrangements, failure to attend, rudeness, failure to supply medical records or reports, doctors' advertising and complaints in relations to doctors' convictions in the courts.
Not alone did complaints against doctors increase in the last five years but the numbers of them found to merit full Fitness to Practise Committee inquiries also increased.
The Fitness to Practise Committee completed hearing 105 inquiries, which was a 100 per cent increase on the number of inquiries completed over the previous five years.
Dr John Hillery, president of the Medical Council, said yesterday he believed the increase in complaints may have been due to the fact that the previous council dealt with a number of high profile cases during its five-year term and this would have made more people aware of the council and aware they could complain to it.
These high profile cases included that of Dr Moira Woods, Dr Michael Neary and Dr Paschal Carmody. Each of these attracted a large number of complaints.
The council dealt with 55 complaints against Dr Woods, the former director of the Sexual Assault Treatment Unit (SATU) at Dublin's Rotunda Hospital. The complaints were in relation to her management of alleged cases of child sexual abuse in five families in the 1980s. Some 13 of the complaints were upheld and she was found guilty of professional misconduct in 2002. The council's Fitness to Practise Committee recommended conditions be attached to the retention of her name on the medical register.
Close to 40 complaints were made against Dr Neary, the former Drogheda obstetrician found guilty of professional misconduct last year over his unnecessary removal of 10 patients' wombs. He was struck off the medical register.
Several complaints were also made against Dr Carmody, the Killaloe GP found guilty of professional misconduct earlier this year. He too was struck off.
A total of 26 doctors were struck off for professional misconduct or unfitness to practise over the past five years.