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NHS morale hits new low

Last Modified: 26 May 2007
By: Andy Davies

With Britain's most senior surgeon accusing Patricia Hewitt of a scandalous failure of duty, relations between the government and the medical profession reach a new low.

The cause of the row is once again the government reforms to the appointment system for junior doctors.

But with nurses furious over their pay, junior doctors unsure of their futures, and now the top brass in revolt, how much worse can it get?

Another week, and another battle line is drawn in the conflict over doctor recruitment. Entering the fray this weekend was Bernard Ribeiro, president of the Royal College of Surgeons.

Until this weekend Mr Reibeiro was a member of the government-led review team overseeing the emergency measures for appointing junior doctors to specialist training posts.

In an open letter sent to Prof Neil Douglas, the chairman of the review team, Ribeiro, says he's had enough.

'At the time of writing, almost two years after first raising my concerns, there is still no recognition whatsoever by DH of the scale of this problem (competition for limited training places) or its profound implications.'
Bernard Ribeiro, president of the Royal College of Surgeons

The implications of this move by Mr Ribeiro are unclear. The work of the review group is almost over. One member of the college told Channel 4 News tonight Ribeiro should have acted a long time ago.

Even if the work almost finished, it is a further embarrassment - and will intensify scrutiny of the health secretary's handling of this issue. Mr Ribeiro is not the first medic to have signalled utter frustration at the government's handling of the issue.

And the Tories have been upping the ante in the Commons recently, calling for Patricia Hewitt to resign.