The new contract for hospital consultants that is being introduced by the government has been criticised by the Irish Medical Organisation (IMO), which describes it as a “missed opportunity”.

According to the chairman of the IMO’s consultant committee, Prof Matthew Sadlier, feedback from consultants nationwide suggests that the government has missed the chance to create a contract that would appeal to both existing and new consultants.

A number of concerns have been identified with the new contract including rostering issues and the requirement for consultants to provide locum support on top of their own clinical responsibilities.

“With over 900 posts that we need to fill, the HSE has chosen to go to the market with this contract. We are concerned that it may not bode well for their plans to increase urgently-needed recruitment,” Prof Sadlier warned.

He said that the IMO will monitor the response to the new contract closely in the coming months and will demand “urgent action” if it runs into difficulties.

He made his comments at the IMO AGM in Killarney at the weekend, which also heard about the many difficulties facing the country’s emergency departments (EDs).

Speaking about this issue, former IMO president and current head of the ED at Beaumont Hospital, Dr Peadar Gilligan, said that the lack of available hospital beds was having a major impact on overcrowding in EDs.

Being able to move ED patients to a ward bed in a timely manner and having more timely availability of lab tests and radiology could reduce the overall length of time spent in EDs, Dr Gilligan explained.

However, he added that without action, this problem will only worsen. He pointed to figures from the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) which project a need for an additional 4,000-6,300 beds in public and private hospitals between 2015 and 2030, with most of these needed in public hospitals.