Madam, - I read with interest the correspondence you have received on the "manpower" crisis in Irish general practice.
A number of female colleagues have written in defence of their fundamental right to work 20 hours a week. Some have suggested that this level of commitment has no impact on patient care. This analysis cannot be allowed to go unchallenged.
It takes at least 11 years to become a general practitioner. The medical education and professional training required are almost entirely funded by the taxpayer. In return I believe the population is entitled to a full-time service.
A GP working 20 hours a week does not see or treat as many patients as one working 40, 50 or 60 hours. That is a simple fact, and to suggest a proliferation of part-time doctors will have no impact on patient care is nonsensical.
In rural areas, soon to be bereft of acute hospital services, a 24-hour GP service is essential. Dedicated doctors thoughout this country have fulfilled this role for generations, at considerable personal sacrifice.
It is now clear that this approach is no longer fashionable or acceptable to a majority of those entering general practice. Indeed, a mere 40-hour week is now apparently regarded as an excessive demand on many of my colleagues. I believe patients will inevitably suffer as a result.
This issue can no longer be ignored. - Yours, etc,
Dr RUAIRI HANLEY, Francis Street, Drogheda, Co Louth.
Madam, - In the recent correspondence on the imminent shortage of general practitioners there has been considerable comment on the lack of training places and the "feminisation" of the profession.
Another major factor that has not been addressed is the restricted entry to the GMS scheme for general practitioners.
The regulations require that expensively trained and suitably qualified doctors must wait at least five years after setting up in practice before they are allowed to treat medical card patients. Thus many doctors are denied a secure livelihood and patients are denied a doctor.
The resolution of this problem does not require extra manpower or resources but simply a change in the outmoded regulations. - Yours, etc,
Dr JAMES LEE, Ballyowen Medical Centre, Lucan, Co Dublin.