What are peoples thoughts on the EU Directive that limits Junior Doctors work to 58 hours per week insterad of the usual 65.

Health boards are liable to a fines of £5000 per breach if they do not comply with this, but by cutting the hours will there will be huge gaps in staffing cover across the board?

Obviously, if a doctor is tired they are less effective and possibly dangerous to patients but is a tired doctor better than no doctor at all?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/3939033.stm

There shouldn't be any staff shortages given that the NHS have seen this coming since 1998.

But of course there wil be. Where they do occur they'll just have to give the fat-cat consultants a little compulsory overtime :D

I would think a tired doctor is actually quite a dangerous doctor.

A disgraceful state of affairs. Mr Blair should hold his head in shame. :o

Originally posted by Mo
A disgraceful state of affairs. Mr Blair should hold his head in shame. :o

What, for ensuring the working time directive is applied? You think doctors should work longer hours then?:confused:

So how long is the longest shift they can do now?

Because if it is still 30 hrs at once this will not stop the problem of doctors being tired.

And surely if you are on-call at the hospital you are still working? How does anyone sleep properly like this?

Originally posted by max
What, for ensuring the working time directive is applied? You think doctors should work longer hours then?:confused:

That anybody, let alone a doctor making life and death decisions should have to work 58 hours a week is nothing to brag about.

Originally posted by fuzzy
So how long is the longest shift they can do now?

Because if it is still 30 hrs at once this will not stop the problem of doctors being tired.

And surely if you are on-call at the hospital you are still working? How does anyone sleep properly like this?

"The directive requires 11 hours' rest in every 24 hours, breaks during shifts and a maximum of eight hours' work in every 24 for night workers. Other groups of employees have a maximum working week of 48 hours and this will apply to junior doctors from 2009."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,,1272422,00.html

Originally posted by Mo
That anybody, let alone a doctor making life and death decisions should have to work 58 hours a week is nothing to brag about.

Although the current hours a junior works are often far too long, many doctors believe that 58 hours will be a good number to work, as it will cut down on tiredness, but still be enough hours to get the training these doctors need. Any less and we could start producing poorly experienced doctors.