Matt Shanahan (Waterford, Independent)
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1359. To ask the Minister for Health the steps he is prepared to take to rectify a matter in relation to non-consultant hospital doctors (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14049/21]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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NCHDs access two employment permit types, the Critical Skills Employment Permit (CSEP) and the General Employment Permit (GEP). A General Employment Permit is typically granted for NCHDs, as an offer of employment for two years is not required. A Critical Skills Permit may be granted to an NCHD where an employer is offering employment for two years. Either permit can now be issued on a multi-site basis if required, subject to relevant conditions attached to both permits being met. Critical Skills Employment Permits are already available to other healthcare professionals such as nurses and this change brings NCHDs in line with these staff categories. In 2020, the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment granted 169 Critical Skills Employment Permit issued to Doctors.

So far in 2021, the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment  has granted 25 Critical Skills Employment Permits to Doctors.  The HSE would anticipate that this number is likely to increase as the vast majority of doctors’ employment permits commence from the month of July.

Employment permits are now facilitated on a multi-site basis for all NCHDs where this is applied for by employers. This means that where an NCHD rotates between employers they may be granted one employment permit for a defined period and this single permit will cover all of their rotations.