Shortlisted candidates: Doctors working both here and in the British NHS are among the candidates being interviewed for the post of chief executive of the Health Service Executive (HSE). Pat McLoughlin, director of the National Hospitals Office and deputy chief executive, is also in the running for the top health management post.
The successful candidate will be responsible for the day-to-day running of the health service.
Following the decision last autumn of chief executive designate Dr Aidan Halligan to remain as deputy chief medical officer in the UK, an intense head-hunting exercise by management consultants began again. The process has resulted in up to seven candidates being shortlisted for interview.
A public health doctor in the UK with extensive experience in health service management is among those shortlisted. Dr Gabriel Scally, originally from Northern Ireland, was co-author, along with Sir Liam Donaldson, chief medical officer for England and Wales, of a landmark paper on clinical governance in the NHS. As a former regional director of public health in southwest England, he has a proven track record in managing the health of a population similar in size to the Republic.
A consultant physician from the south of the country who played a leading role in the now defunct Comhairle na nOspidéal is also among the final candidates.