Michael Harty (Clare, Independent) | Oireachtas source

He or she may have flagged well in advance when he is leaving. It may take a year to recruit somebody, if one can recruit such a consultant. It all comes down to a lack of trust and a lack of respect. I think there is a lack of trust from the medical profession of the HSE and the HSE does not respect the staff they have in place. The HSE does not embrace them and does not see them as a natural resource, but sees them sometimes as an impediment.

There is also the issue of consultants who are not on the specialist register. One either has no service or a service provided by a person who is acting up. That is obviously not satisfactory. I think that one in 25 consultants is not on the register and many of those are in psychiatry.