Two consultant surgeons have been suspended from Cavan General Hospital, the North Eastern Health Board has confirmed, write Elaine Keogh and Alison Healy
The health board did not name the consultants, but informed sources confirmed their names as Mr William Joyce and Mr Pawan Rajpal. Under the Health Act 1970, the consultants have been suspended without pay.
The circumstances that led to the decision by the CEO of the health board, Mr Paul Robinson, to suspend both consultants were not clarified by the health board last night but the suspension was thought to be due to severe interpersonal difficulties between the consultants.
The suspensions will affect surgical cases at the hospital, which has been under additional pressure since Monaghan General Hospital went off-call last summer. Up to two-thirds of surgical activity at the hospital will be affected pending the appointment of locum consultants.
Neither surgeon was available for comment. A family friend at Mr Rajpal's house said yesterday evening that Mr Rajpal was out and did not know when he would return. Mr Joyce could not be contacted.
Mr Robinson said in a statement: "The suspensions follow an examination and consideration by the CEO of complaints/concerns raised by and regarding consultant surgeons at Cavan earlier this year. The examination and consideration was carried out in accordance with the terms of the consultants' contract."
The health board said it was trying to secure locum cover "to ensure there is a minimum disruption to patient services".
After receiving independent clinical advice, Mr Robinson said he was "satisfied that there is no indication that surgical decision-making or practice at Cavan General compromised patient safety or welfare".
The Minister for Health and Children, Mr Martin, has been asked by him to set up a committee to inquire into the matters and "pending the examination of the matters by this committee, the NEHB will not be making any further comment," Mr Robinson added.
However, Independent TD for Cavan-Monaghan, Mr Paudge Connolly, said: "To suspend them is an over-reaction and a failure of the system in place if it cannot deal with what I understand to be inter-personal difficulties.
"If the system was working properly, this would have been picked up earlier and dealt with. It is the job of the health board executive to sort out such problems," he added.
Meanwhile, in a separate statement last night, the North Eastern Health Board said it had commissioned an independent external review of the care of a small number of women who had complained of their treatment in the obstetrical unit of Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda, Co Louth.
The health board management sought the advice of their external risk advisers on the reports. The risk advisers are expected to report soon.
"This is an ongoing process and the North Eastern Health Board cannot comment any further in relation to this matter," the statement added.