By not insisting on compulsory retirement for medical consultants Malta can benefit from those who wish to work longer, foreign consultants told the Malta Independent.
One of the consultants said - “There is now no retirement age for consultants or GPs in the UK. It used to be at 65 years of age, but that was abolished over two years ago”.
“The pension age for consultants is 65 years. We can take the pension earlier but that will be at a reduced rate. We can retire for a day after age 65 years and take our pension and then go back to work. We can delay taking our pension after 65, but there is not a great financial advantage to this”.
They explained that in the UK, they can continue to consult after age 65 for as long as they want.
Speaking about those who are past 65-years of age, a consultant said: “they have vast experience which is invaluable, and younger consultants can still benefit from having such colleagues available for their advice and expertise. Medical knowledge can be taught through training, but experience cannot, and this is one of the most important things in terms of acquiring expertise.
“ It is quite astonishing to me that someone with the experience and expertise of Albert Fenech should be made to retire in his early sixties. As a senior cardiologist he still has so much to offer, and his younger colleagues will not yet have acquired his skills and knowledge, even if they think they have!!
“The retirement system in Malta needs an urgent review and revision. I think whoever has stopped Albert from working at the Mater Dei needs to think again, or indeed consider whether they are actually fit for purpose in the position they hold”.
Recently, Professor Albert Fenech was effectively sent packing on the basis that he cannot continue to work full-time beyond pensionable age due to public sector rules.
Contacted by this newsroom, Medical Association of Malta President Gordon Caruana Dingli was asked whether he agrees with the current retirement age for consultants and GPs, however he was evasive in his answer.
He said – “The retirement age for doctors and consultants who work with the government is the same as that of most government employees. This is currently 62 years and it will increase in stages to reach 65 years for those retiring in 12 years’ time. There are exceptions to this rule; the police and the armed forces who retire earlier and university lecturers and the judiciary who retire later”.
“The public service management code allows post retirement employees to continue working if there is no replacement. The Government – Medical Association of Malta collective agreement also goes a step further allowing consultants to be retained“if the need arises”. One example would be to allow expansion of a department, or to improve the quality of service provision”
Asked whether he believes that, keeping in mind there exist circumstances where consultants can remain working, being made to retire at 65 results in a loss of expertise, he said – “Many consultants have amassed a wealth of experience by the age of 65, and some of these may be willing and fit to keep on working. In fact there are currently a number of consultants who were successfully retained after retirement age for various reasons”.
Mr Caruana Dingli said that there is no doubt that people are living longer today, and that the number of 65 year-olds who are fit and willing to continue working is increasing.
Asked whether it was the right decision for Albert Fenech to be made to resign, given that government plans to expand bed capacity in both Malta and Gozo, he said – “it is the management’s prerogative to decide how many consultants are needed in each department. If the government wants to increase the number of specialists in any particular field this can be done by training more young doctors, retaining post-retirement consultants, or both of these”.
Mr Caruana Dingli was asked about those with experience possibly moving abroad as a result. He replied that there have always been a number of Maltese doctors, of all ages, who worked abroad and “many have been successful. This will depend on the individual circumstances and opportunities”.