The POCC was brought in by the Government in 2023 to comply with universal healthcare policies by phasing out private work in public hospitals. The POCC allows consultants to access €8,000 in funds to improve patient care and improve services.
Last week Professor Sean Daly, the master of the Rotunda, told the Oireachtas that POCC consultants in the Rotunda had been permitted to deviate from their contracts, as there was no private maternity option available in Ireland.
Currently no private maternity hospitals exist in Ireland, yet 1 in 4 maternity patients choose private healthcare.
The Rotunda Hospital is the largest maternity hospital in northern Europe, caring for over 10,000 babies each year. The hospital is 90% funded by the HSE, as it is a public hospital.
In the Rotunda less than half of the consultants have signed up for the POCC, which is below the national average of 67%.
In response health Minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill spoke out stating
“They are being paid very good salaries to work in the public system, and we expect them to be there,”
“It would not be correct for any health minister to not push this in the way that is necessary,"
“They have signed a contract.”
The Minister explained that she expects the Hospital to operate in compliance with Government policy.
The board of the Rotunda held a meeting to discuss the risks and consequences of the practice. In a statement the board of the hospital said “In all of its deliberations, the board’s overriding priority is to ensure that every patient receives the best possible care, regardless of whether they are a public or private service user,”
They now have requested a meeting with the Minister to resolve the issue for "the good of all patients,"
The Minister for Health has explained that maternity care insurance is so expensive that the state pays for both private and public maternity care.
Saying there would be no problem is the private network also covered insurance.
“The point of differentiation on this is if something goes wrong in maternity, at the moment it is only the state that can underpin the liability,” she said.
The HSE has told the Rotunda in a letter that is is considering all its options, including withholding funding, if the hospital continues with its non-compliance of the contracts.
However MacNeill has assured the public that nothing will interrupt patient care.
