The Maltese Paediatric Association (MPA) called on the authorities to prevent further losses of highly trained paediatricians due to the “their appalling and rapidly deteriorating work conditions”.

With a unanimous vote in an extraordinary general meeting, the MPA expressed its concern about the standards of medical care and patient safety provided by a single senior registrar during on-duty hours in the Paediatric Department of St Luke’s Hospital.

There is a “serious and chronic shortage of senior registrars providing emergency coverage at the Special Care Baby Unit (SCBU), labour ward, nursery, paediatrics wards and emergency department.”

The MPA called upon the Health Minister, Director General of Health and Chairman of Paediatrics to increase the number of paediatricians without further delay to allow uninterrupted onsite cover for the SCBU while others can attend to other emergencies in St Luke’s.

Compensatory rest is needed for all doctors on duty to safeguard their health and safety and the staff at the Department of Paediatrics needs to be increased substantially.

The senior registrar on duty works under unacceptable mental and physical stress, without a compensatory rest period or break to ensure that no injury is caused to the patients, the association said.

Only one paediatrician staffs the SCBU for periods between 17 to 24 hours despite the “vastly increasing complexity and standards of medical care, patient expectations, and difficulties presented by recurrent medical equipment failure.”

A letter of complaint signed by all the paediatric consultants and senior registrars was sent on 8 March to the Director General of Health, but as yet no acknowledgment was received.

The MPA represents over 90 per cent of paediatricians practising in Malta and Gozo.