Minister for Health Mary Harney is to meet the Irish Medical Organisation (IMO) today in an effort to resolve a row on new contracts for consultants.
Following the meeting with the IMO, which represents 800 consultants, Ms Harney will meet the Irish Hospital Consultants' Association (IHCA) on Thursday.
Ms Harney said last week she wanted to move the situation on and work in a businesslike way towards reaching a solution. However, it is unclear what, if any, new proposals the Minister will put forward to break the deadlock.
The introduction of a new contract for hospital consultants is one of the key elements of the Government's overall healthcare reforms. However, the process has been beset by rows and failed negotiations for years.
In April, after a deadline set by Ms Harney for completion of talks was missed, the Government decided unilaterally to advertise new consultant posts on revised terms and conditions.
Medical organisations have boycotted the recruitment process for the consultants to be recruited on the revised terms. The Government has offered salaries of up to €205,000 a year.
On Saturday the IHCA decided to defer its current action "to create the right atmosphere" for Thursday's talks.
IHCA members have been refusing to participate in hospital and national committees and have been boycotting some administrative duties as part of a row over the Government's decision to advertise without the new posts without agreement.