Interns returning from certified leave can only be facilitated to complete their internship within the health regions’ employment limit, the HSE Chief People Officer (CPO) stated earlier this year.
In correspondence to Medical Council President Dr Suzanne Crowe in February, Ms Anne Marie Hoey wrote: “The accommodation of an intern following a leave of absence or a late starter must be made within the Health Region WTE [whole-time equivalent] limit. It will be very important that the management of the intern training programme recognises these constraints to ensure that it is working directly with the Health Region to manage these individual cases within the WTE limit.”
Ms Hoey was responding to correspondence from Dr Crowe on concerns discussed by the medical intern board (MIB) regarding “intern year leave principles not being fully abided by”.
In her letter in December, Dr Crowe wrote that interns returning from certified leave – such as maternity or sick leave – were entitled to return to a recognised intern training post to complete their internship.
“Predominantly, the concern brought to the MIB attention relates to intern places not being allocated to those returning from periods of leave, or late starters.”
As a result, the Medical Council was “asking that clinical training sites abide by the intern leave principles and allocate posts to interns who need extra time to finish their intern training”.
“Adhering to this guidance is crucial in ensuring that interns returning to the programme will be facilitated to successfully complete their training, gain their certificate of experience, and progress with their medical education, training, and professional career. Please take a moment to review the intern leave principles and ensure all steps are followed.”
In her response, Ms Hoey stated that the HSE “fully” recognised the importance of supporting completion of the intern year. She outlined that the leave principles included with Dr Crowe’s correspondence were developed prior to the establishment of the health regions. Therefore, it was now “timely” for the MIB to review these principles, with input from National Doctors Training and Planning, to ensure the current governance structures of the HSE were “appropriately reflected”.
The correspondence was obtained under Freedom of Information law. In February, the Medical Independent reported that the intern leave principles were being reviewed following the HSE’s restructuring.
A HSE spokesperson commented that it is “fully committed” to ensuring all interns are facilitated to complete their 12-month internship, including those who take periods of certified leave such as maternity or sick leave.
The “unique nature” of the intern year has been highlighted to the health regions. The HSE has emphasised that “close local coordination between regional HR, clinical leads, and intern training networks is particularly important to ensure returning interns are accommodated”.
“It is recognised that this may be challenging in terms of pay and workforce numbers,” added the spokesperson. “In some cases, this may mean short periods of double occupancy in intern posts. However, this flexibility is necessary to ensure that no doctor is prevented from progressing to general registration and continuing their career. The HSE is not aware of any case where an intern returning from an approved period of certified leave has not been facilitated to complete their internship.”
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