Medical professionals need political stability and recurrent funding so they can start to tackle waiting lists, RCPhysicians has said.
RCP president Dr Sarah Clarke, who attended the meeting, said: "The medical workforce crisis in Northern Ireland is getting worse.
"In 2021, only 27% of advertised consultant physician posts in Northern Ireland were filled, with 33% of unsuccessful appointments being down to a total lack of applicants. "This is a frightening drop from 2008, when 83% of advertised posts were filled, or even just a few years ago in 2018, when the figure for Northern Ireland was 73%.
"Doctors, nurses and allied health professionals need political stability, strategic direction and recurrent funding so they can start to tackle waiting lists, rota gaps and growing inequalities." Consultant physician Aidan O'Neill said long-lasting reform for the health service needed executive funding and planning."There are lots of gaps in the rota and that is quite fragile and not sustainable because there isn't the reserve there to deal with an extra pressure and I think we will probably see that in winter."It also featured findings from its 2021 census of thousands of consultant physicians and higher specialty trainees in the UK.