Health Act, 1970
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Bodies for co-ordination and development of hospital services. |
41.—(1) (a) The Minister, after consultation with such bodies representative of persons concerned with the provision of hospital services and such other bodies (including bodies engaged in medical education) as he considers appropriate, shall by regulations establish a body which shall be known as Comhairle na nOspidéal and is in this section referred to as the Council. | |
(b) The functions of the Council shall be— | ||
(i) to regulate the number and type of appointments of consultant medical staffs and such other officers or staffs as may be prescribed, in hospitals engaged in the provision of services under this Act; | ||
(ii) to specify qualifications for appointments referred to in subparagraph (i), subject to any general requirements determined by the Minister; | ||
(iii) to advise the Minister or any body established under this Act on matters relating to the organisation and operation of hospital services; | ||
(iv) to prepare and publish reports relating to hospital services; | ||
(v) to perform any functions which may be prescribed, after consultation with the Council and with such bodies engaged in medical education as appear to the Minister to be appropriate, in relation to the selection of persons for appointments referred to in subparagraph (i); and | ||
(vi) to perform such other cognate functions in relation to hospital services as may be prescribed. | ||
(c) Before making a decision in pursuance of paragraph (b) (i) in relation to an appointment, the duties in relation to which involve the teaching of clinical medicine or the conduct of medical research under the direction of one or more than one college, the Council shall consult each such college. | ||
(d) A function in relation to the selection of a person for an appointment, the holder of which is a full-time or whole-time professor in a college, shall not be prescribed under paragraph (b) (v) save with the consent of that college. | ||
(e) In this subsection “college” means a college which awards a qualifying diploma mentioned in the Second Schedule to the Medical Practitioners Act, 1927 , or a college of a university which awards such a diploma. | ||
(f) Not less than half of the persons appointed to be members of the Council shall be registered medical practitioners engaged in a consultant capacity in the provision of hospital services. | ||
(g) Regulations under this subsection may provide for the procedure for the selection of persons for appointment to the Council. | ||
(2) (a) The Minister shall by regulations establish a regional hospital board for each of three regions based on Dublin, Cork and Galway and by such regulations shall specify the title and functional area of each board so established and, subject to paragraph (c), shall specify the membership of each such board. | ||
(b) A regional hospital board shall perform such functions as may be prescribed in relation to the general organisation and development of hospital services in an efficient and satisfactory manner in the hospitals administered by health boards and other bodies in its functional area which are engaged in the provision of services under this Act. | ||
(c) One-half of the members of a regional hospital board shall be persons appointed by the health boards the functional areas of which are included in the functional area of the regional hospital board and one-half shall be appointed by the Minister after consultation with, or on nominations of, such bodies representative of persons concerned with the provision of hospital services and such other bodies (including bodies engaged in medical education) as the Minister considers appropriate. | ||
(d) A reference in this Act to a regional hospital board shall be construed as a reference to a body established under this subsection. | ||
(3) The following provisions shall have effect in relation to a body established under this section— | ||
(a) it shall be a body corporate with perpetual succession; | ||
(b) it may sue and be sued in its corporate name and may hold and dispose of land; | ||
(c) it shall provide and have a common seal and all courts of justice shall take judicial notice of the seal; | ||
(d) Rules 6, 7, 10, 13, 14 (2), 15 and 18 to 32 of the rules set out in the Second Schedule shall apply in relation to the body and for this purpose any reference in those rules to the board shall be construed as a reference to the body. | ||
(4) The first meeting of a body established under this section shall be held on a day to be appointed by the Minister and the body shall hold such other meetings as may be necessary for the performance of its functions. | ||
(5) (a) The Minister shall from time to time appoint, from amongst the members of a body established under this section, a chairman and a vice-chairman of that body. | ||
(b) A chairman or vice-chairman appointed under this subsection shall hold office for the period specified by the Minister at his appointment unless— | ||
(i) he ceases to be, or becomes disqualified for being, a member of the body; | ||
(ii) he resigns the office of chairman or vice-chairman and his resignation becomes effective under this subsection; | ||
(iii) the Minister terminates his appointment as chairman or vice-chairman. | ||
(c) A chairman or vice-chairman appointed under this subsection may at any time resign his office of chairman or vice-chairman by giving notice in writing signed by him to the Minister, but the resignation shall not become effective until the commencement of the meeting of the body held next after the receipt by the Minister of the resignation. | ||
(6) A body established under this section shall not dispose of land or property save with the consent of the Minister. | ||
(7) (a) A body established under this section may appoint such committees as it thinks fit and may define the functions and procedure of any such committee and, subject to any limitation specified by the Minister, may delegate specified functions to any such committees. | ||
(b) Membership of a committee appointed under this subsection may, with the consent of the Minister, include persons who are not members of the body appointing it. | ||
(8) Regulations under this section shall contain such provisions as the Minister, subject to subsection (1) (b), considers appropriate in relation to the number, grades, method of appointment, conditions of service, tenure of office and remuneration of the officers and servants of a body established under this section. | ||
(9) The following provisions shall apply in relation to appointments referred to in subsection (1) (b) (i) by a regional hospital board: | ||
(a) the remuneration and allowances and any ancillary expenses in relation to a person so appointed who is assigned to a health board or a particular hospital or group of hospitals shall be recouped to the regional hospital board by the health board or the authorities of the hospital or the group of hospitals; | ||
(b) any such person while so assigned shall be subject to the like controls as apply under this Act or otherwise to officers of the health board or to appointments to the particular hospital or group of hospitals, as may be appropriate. | ||
(10) (a) Regulations under subsection (2) may provide that any reference to a health board in this Act (other than in sections 13, 14, 16, 17, 22 and 23) or in any other enactment shall be construed as including a reference to a regional hospital board. | ||
(b) This subsection shall not operate to permit the application by section 15 of the Local Authorities (Officers and Employees) Acts, 1926 and 1940, to appointments other than for hospitals maintained by health boards. | ||
(11) The Minister may, out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas, pay a grant to a body established under this section. | ||
(12) The Hospitals Trust Board shall make out of the Hospitals Trust Fund such contributions towards the expenses of a body established under this section as the Minister from time to time directs. | ||
(13) A body established under this section may accept a gift of money, land or other property on such trusts and conditions as may be specified by the person making the gift, but shall not accept a gift if any conditions attached to the acceptance thereof are inconsistent with the functions of the body. | ||
(14) A draft of regulations which it is proposed to make under this section shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas and the regulations shall not be made until a resolution approving of the draft has been passed by each House. | ||
(15) Section 5 (5) of the Health Act, 1947 , shall not apply to regulations under this section. | ||
(16) Nothing in this section or in regulations made thereunder shall operate to terminate or affect in any way any rights which a person referred to in subsection (1) (b) (i) had on the 1st day of October, 1969. |