Willie O'Dea (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)

No member of the Defence Forces will go out without medical treatment. That we do not have a full complement in the medical corps means expertise from outside the Defence Forces must be hired, which is done.

There are compelling reasons for the difficulties in recruitment to the medical corps. First, it is not the ideal career opportunity for a doctor as they may not get to widen their medical expertise. One complaint made concerned pay which has been increased substantially by kind permission of the Department of Finance.

The Army is not unique in this regard. Other armies have informed me they have great difficulty in filling their medical corps complements. I agree with Colonel Brian O'Keeffe that we must think outside the box. We are considering engaging consultants to give ideas on progressing the matter.

In the United Kingdom, the army medical corps and the NHS have partially integrated. Specific wards in several hospitals are set aside where army doctors treat military personnel and general patients, allowing them to widen their range of expertise. I am not suggesting this will be the model to follow but such arrangements are being examined.

Doctors in the Army, except when they are abroad, will treat healthy and fit young people, with a small range of ailments. It is known as occupational medicine. We are examining ways of attracting doctors to give them extra skills and qualifications for their time spent in the Army.

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