Dr Tom Ryan announced as new President of the IHCA
Dr Tom Ryan announced as new President of the IHCA
New IHCA President cites capacity deficits which are jeopardising patient care
17th June, 2016: The Irish Hospital Consultants Association (IHCA) has announced that Dr Tom Ryan, Consultant in Intensive Care and Anesthesia, St James’s Hospital, Dublin, was elected President of the Association at the June IHCA National Council meeting. Dr Ryan takes over the Presidency from Dr Gerard Crotty, who had completed his two year term.
Dr Ryan has been a Consultant in Intensive Care and Anesthesia since 1997. He began his training in Ireland, followed by sub-specialty training at the University of Washington in the US. He undertook additional Intensive Care and Anesthesia training at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota and was a consultant in the Cleveland Clinic, before returning to Ireland to his position in St. James’s Hospital.
Commenting, after being elected the 16th IHCA President, Dr Ryan said he was enthusiastic about the real opportunities that exist for the State, after so many years of austerity, to address the fundamental constraints which are severely restricting delivery of timely high quality safe care to patients. Dr Ryan highlighted the critical lack of physical capacity and other resource constraints, which have been compounded by a damaging medical brain drain in recent years.
The newly appointed IHCA President said that consultants, who attempt to deliver safe care for their patients, are continuously aware of the mismatch between the available physical and human resources and the actual needs of their patients. “The urgency for investment cannot be overstated in view of the inexorable increase in demand for acute medical care. Investment must be accompanied by improved clinical governance to ensure that new investment improves quality of care and patient safety,” he said.
“As a Consultant in Intensive Care, I am very concerned that the lack of intensive care unit (ICU) beds is putting patients’ lives at risk. The reduction in ICU beds in recent years contrasts sharply with the recommendations of the HSE commissioned Prospectus Report. Prospectus recommended in 2009 that the number of ICU beds increase by 45% immediately and double by 2020. These recommendations have not been acted upon.”
“In the last decade a total of 1,500 acute hospital beds have been closed. The unacceptable consequences of the resultant inadequate capacity, is that hundreds of patients are being treated on trolleys every day. 75,000 patients were awaiting essential surgery at the end of May and the cancellation of surgical appointments is a regular occurrence because of the shortage of acute hospital beds” he added.
The IHCA President said there is a real opportunity for the State and Minister Simon Harris to end the discrimination against new entrant consultants and honour the 2008 Consultant Contract; actions that are necessary to restore trust and our international competiveness in recruiting consultants.
Dr Ryan will be joined by two new Vice Presidential appointments to the IHCA, in Dr Oisín O’Connell, Consultant in Respiratory Medicine, Mater Hospital and Dr Roy Browne, Consultant Psychiatrist, Phoenix Care Centre.
ENDS
For more information:
Fiona Murphy, FleishmanHillard +353 1 6188 470 / +353 87 8194464