IMO will ballot NCHD members

The move follows a breakdown in talks between the IMO and the Department of Health. The IMO will also return to the High Court to have the matter heard.

In late October, the Department of Health and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform agreed in the High Court to enter talks with the IMO on this matter. Earlier today, the two Departments disengaged from those talks and effectively breached the agreement reached at the High Court, according to the IMO.

Speaking today, Dr John Duddy, President of the IMO said: “It is just a further example of the lack of respect for doctors and ignoring the crisis we have in retaining doctors in Ireland. It is typical of Government to reach agreements and breach them within a matter of weeks. Doctors will have no choice now but to consider all avenues to have our issues resolved including industrial action.”

Dr Duddy said doctors did not want strike and such an action would be taken “with great reluctance”. However, he said doctors had been left with no choice.

“We are in an era of growing waiting lists, insufficient beds and too few consultants yet the policy of this Minister is to make sure that we actively encourage our highly trained doctors to leave Ireland and work abroad. This Minister talks a lot about reform of the services and he is well aware of the need to keep doctors in Ireland yet he, and his colleagues in Government, send out a very different message to doctors.”