In a significant change of policy the Irish Medical Organisation (IMO) has decided to enter negotiations on a new contract for hospital consultants.
The organisation has told Minister for Health Mary Harney that it is now prepared to commence talks without preconditions.
The doctors' organisation, which represents 700 hospital consultants, had been refusing to negotiate a new contract pending the resolution of a dispute over the capping of insurance cover for medical negligence claims following the introduction of a system of State indemnity last year. The IMO is also seeking compensation for consultants who now face higher insurance premiums following the introduction of the Clinical Indemnity Scheme.
However, the Irish Hospital Consultants' Association (IHCA), which represents some 1,800 consultants, said last night it had no plans to re-enter contract negotiations.
The IMO initiative follows a request from Ms Harney in a letter sent last month to both organisations to commence talks on a new contract. The Minister had requested that talks begin by October 1st, under the chairmanship of Mark Connaughton SC, and that they be completed by the end of the year.
Ms Harney said yesterday she welcomed the decision by the consultant committee of the IMO. "I look forward to negotiations starting quickly. The consultant contract is archaic and does not suit the needs of patients, the health system or consultants themselves. I want to make sure there is a new contract in place early next year".
IMO director of industrial relations Fintan Hourihan said: "The IMO will be seeking an assurance from the Tánaiste that there will be no further unilateral changes in contractual terms for consultants for the duration of talks on a revision of the common contract and that there will be no decision made on any aspect of the professional practice of consultants without consultation and agreement. Ultimately, we will be reminding the employer side in the talks that nothing will be agreed until everything is agreed. Thereafter, a ballot of all IMO consultant members will be arranged," Mr Hourihan added.
"Consultants want to be part of the solution to the many difficulties we face in health reforms," Seán Tierney, chairman of the IMO consultant committee, said. Issues such as disciplinary procedures, which had been changed under the 2004 Health Act, and consultants' pensions would have to be dealt with early in the contract negotiations. He expressed annoyance at remarks made by Minister for Finance Brian Cowen last week that consultants were not engaging in the negotiation process.
The Irish Times understands that Dr Brendan Drumm, chief executive of the Health Service Executive, is scheduled to meet the IHCA next week.