Hospitals in this region are set to lose half of their newly-qualified doctors this summer.
The HSE plans to cut 49 of their 99 interns currently working in facilities in Clare and Limerick in July.
Hundreds of additional intern positions were created last year after the onset of the pandemic, but the decision has been made not to offer the extra jobs to the 2021 cohort of interns.
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Representative of the Keep Our Doctors Campaign, Dr Cormac Duff, who was working in UMHL until January, says the move will lead to lower standards of care in hospitals here.
UL HOSPITALS GROUP RESPONSE
All hospital sites in Ireland were given the opportunity to take on additional interns last year as part of the national response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Under this national response, UL Hospitals Group was allocated an additional 47 intern posts as a once-off additional placement.
Traditionally, interns apply for posts through a CAO-like placement system, listing their locations in order of preference. Depending on their final exams, they are matched and offered intern posts in one of the locations that they have listed. Not all are offered intern posts. There has always been a shortfall of places, and traditionally, some interns return to their home countries when they are finished in medical school.
While all interns were offered posts in July 2020, this was an exception. The national funding for placement of interns has reverted to the pre 2020 level, meaning that UL Hospitals Group reverts to its regular number of 54 intern posts from the July 2021 changeover.
UL Hospitals Group is grateful to all the interns in our hospitals for their invaluable efforts in helping to provide safe, efficient care for our patients during the past year.
