General Practitioners in Laois are set to join their colleagues from around the country on Wednesday February 6 in a mass protest.
Hundreds of GPs from every part of Ireland will be holding a mass protest outside Dáil Éireann.
This will mean that on the day, many GP practices maybe be closed to patients, or will have limited services available.
There is likely to be significant disruption to the GP service around the country on the day of the national protest.
GPs will be protesting they say on behalf of patients, as the family doctor service is, or has in some areas, completely collapsed.
Laois doctors say the purpose of the protest is to highlight the current state of general practice in Ireland.
They say that for the past 10 years successive governments have suffocated general practice by withdrawing funding. They say they are now at a crisis point where patients cannot get a GP in their locality with the majority of GPs closing their practices to new patients, we have a national shortage of GPs and for the first time ever, patients are experiencing waiting lists to see their GP.
The list of Laois doctors taking part are as follows: Dr David Booth, Dr Robert Lawlor, Dr Michelle Byrne, Dr Conor Grimes, Dr Peter Kemple, Dr Paddy O Dwyer, Dr Maria Carroll, Dr John Geraghty, Dr Simon Honan, Dr Maeve Lee, Dr Julie Cunningham, Dr Mary Sheehan, Dr Sinead Burke, Dr Sarah Punch, Dr Vivek Mahadev, Dr Sean Montague, Dr Andrew Lavin, Dr Sharon McDonald, Dr Adrian McDonald, Dr Sharon Delaney, Dr David Rabinowicz, Dr Anne Marie Miller, Dr John Paul Campion, Dr Averil Atkinson, Dr Caitlin McFadden, Dr Deirdre Honan, Dr Anna Gullane and Dr John Madden.
The group say they are tired of having to say:
- “Sorry we can’t give you a same day appointment”
- “Sorry our nurse is only here part-time”
- “Sorry I can only give you a few minutes per consultation”
- “Sorry, you have to wait four years for your hip replacement”.
- “Sorry, you have to wait two years for an outpatient appointment.”
- “Sorry, you have to wait five years for your cataract surgery.”
- “Sorry, you are unable to access physiotherapy, psychology, podiatry and all the other ancillary services that make a health system work efficiently and safely”.
- “Sorry, your relative died on a waiting list before their appointment came around.”
They say: “We have not chosen this decision lightly but it is vital for us to make the Government and others fully aware that our health system is in crisis and has been so for years.
“This is despite that fact that we have one of the most expensive health systems in the world.
“Evidence from around the world confirms that community based health systems, like the family doctor system, are the most efficient, safe and effective.
“Years of successive cuts in Government funding for general practice have created an inefficient unstructured health system which is collapsing.
“Also, promised extra investment in developing the GP service, like the fairytale promises under Sláintecare, have not even been begun to be delivered, so that the family doctor service can be healthy and sustainable for the future.
“For months, the Government have promised to reverse the 38% cuts imposed over past years (FEMPI cuts to GPs) and to offer – and properly fund a new, modernised GP contract – but these things have not materialised.
“The number of doctors who can no longer take on any more patients is a growing crisis.
“The medical card system can no longer cope, having been starved of resources.
“Not enough new doctors are being appointed by the State, to serve the public and many are having to retire early, due to burnout.
“GPs are at, and many have passed, breaking point.
“The future survival of the GP service is vital, to enable it to serve patients.
“This issue affects whole communities around Ireland.
“For these reasons, GPs will be taking unprecedented action on Feb 6.”
