In light of the McCarthy Report at least one Consultant believes hes overpaid

jonsnow

Madam, – The “Bord Snip” report makes interesting reading in respect of the recommendations for significant increases in out of pocket costs if you are a sick person attending a hospital or in need of medications. It is particularly relevant in the context of a rise in my gross salary in May of €25,000 to €225,000 under the terms of the new contract for hospital doctors. The cost of implementation of the contract this year is reported to be €140 million.
It also seems absurd that this expenditure has been sanctioned by Government and executed by Prof Drumm, CEO of the HSE, when the Government and the CEO are witness both to cuts in Crumlin children’s hospital and to the work of managers in the HSE in Naas, who are currently forcing the most savage cuts in our public hospitals throughout the country, apparently without a care for the needs of patients or frontline staff trying to provide hospital services.
While it would appear that the terms of the contract must be legally fulfilled, one must question the morality of this in the context of the above facts. Somehow I thought, given the financial crisis, a mechanism would be found by Government to postpone or alter the financial terms of this contract through negotiation with consultant bodies, or if not, through Colm McCarthy’s public service report, whose terms of reference provided wriggle room for him to at least make some comment, if not recommendations in this regard. This thorny work, according to the report, is to be dealt with by the reconvened commission on pay for higher public servants.
I am increasingly despondent about the country’s political and health service governance. We are experiencing the worst financial crisis this country has ever seen, and yet Government can on the one hand allow a large increase in health expenditure on salaries for highly paid health service personnel, and on the other, through its health service executive arm, cut hospital and other health services to sick people. Its public service review body does not even refer to these facts, but at the same time, makes recommendations to cut social welfare payments to those at the bottom of the ladder.
Is all of this not outrageous? I think we might have had attempts at kidnapping of executives in the HSE or Government or had a revolution if this had happened in France! – Yours, etc,
Dr JOHN BARTON,
Consultant physician,
Portiuncula Hospital,
Ballinasloe,
Co Galway.


In todays Irish times.Fair play to Dr. Barton for arguing that a public servant earning €200,000 getting a €25,000 salary increase in the current climate is outrageous and for having the guts to publish the letter with his name.I can,t see this making him too popular with his colleagues on the hospital corridors and on the golf courses.How often do you see someone writing in to complain to the times that they,re being paid too much!!!!

spank_inferno

It all seems well and good, but....

It wasnt the review boards job to comment on renumeration.
He mentions "wriggle room" in the terms of reference, pretty vague.

And i'm sure he can make arrangements with his hospitals HR dept, or the payroll people to not put through his pay rise.

He may have come across more a bit more righteous had he mentioned the efforts he made with the consultants organisation not to spend years lobbying/threatening the government for more money.

Its hard to look noble on €225,000 (on top of the private sector money they also earn)