Sir, – I read your Editorial, “The junior doctors dilemma” (July 11th), with a mixture of amusement and annoyance this evening as I finished a weekend on call as a consultant paediatrician. I have just completed 81 hours of continuous duty between 8am last Friday and 5pm this Monday. During that time I was the only paediatrician looking after a maternity hospital with 5,000 deliveries per annum, a paediatric department with 53 beds and 4,000 admissions a year and a paediatric A E department with 20,000 child attendances per annum. I was supported by three registrars and two senior house officers, all of whom worked 24-hour shifts only.
My consultant contract and salary is for a 37-hour week, yet this weekend I worked 81 hours. Effectively I provided a pro bono service to the public. I am paid a good salary and I recognise that my on-call is a quid pro quo for the salary that I am paid. I am not complaining, I am not a martyr, this is what I have always done since I qualified as a doctor 34 years ago. This is the career and profession that I chose as a young man.
However, please give me and my consultant colleagues in acute specialties due recognition for the enormous contribution that we make to the health services of this country.
Your otherwise good Editorial on the junior doctor crisis was spoiled by the non sequitur in your last sentence. You want to cut my salary despite the fact that I work long weekends and nights on call for virtually nothing! You think that that will solve the junior doctor crisis!
The legendary editor of the Guardiannewspaper, CP Snow, famously wrote, "Comment is free, but facts are sacred". You need to establish the facts about consultants' working hours and demystify the media image of hospital consultants. Consultants work way beyond their contracted hours and this is often lost in the current debate. – Yours, etc,