Junior doctors have reacted angrily to the keynote address by the Minister for Health, Mr Martin, to the IMO conference, claiming it contained no fresh proposals which might avert their threatened industrial action.
A nationwide strike is now a real possibility following the balloting of more 3,000 Non-Consultant Hospital Doctors (NCHDs) seeking improved work conditions, IMO junior doctor group spokesman, Dr Mick Molloy, said.
NCHDs, who will today "name and shame" hospitals which deny doctors overtime entitlements, said the Minister's reluctance to "get stuck in" over the dispute had fuelled militancy among doctors. NCHD rancour was grounded in Mr Martin's failure to signal any yielding of ground on the central issue of long working hours or to confront hospital management over claims that they flouted overtime deals.
The Minister ruled out fast-track implementation of an EU working time directive setting a maximum working week for NCHDs at 48 hours. The 48-hour ceiling is not due to come into force for nine years. Mr Martin went on to express the hope that a strike could be averted and said contacts between doctors and hospital management had been maintained.
Dr Molloy claimed NCHDs were losing confidence in the Minister's ability to defuse the dispute. Doctors were expected to return an overwhelming Yes vote when the strike ballot closed in two weeks, he said.
"We came here hoping to hear some new ideas from the Minister. We were positive that he would make some statements that would ease our unrest. We didn't get that. Mr Martin appears to be slowly waking up to the fact that he could soon be facing a strike by doctors. But he must show a willingness to confront the issue head on if he expects to make any progress," Dr Molloy said.
"The Minister talked about giving commitments but hospitals are already breaking their commitments. Doctors want firm guarantees that they will receive their overtime dues."
Reform of the health service's "antediluvian" rostering structures forms the kernel of NCHD demands. According to the IMO, many junior doctors routinely working more than 65 hours a week do not receive any overtime. Dr Molloy said he would today identify hospitals which derogated from overtime commitments.
