EWTD and Consultants Filling the Gaps

In many trusts consultants are the glue holding rotas together. Across Trent different approaches have been taken. The summary position is that the hours need to be negotiated.

'...emergency work that takes place at regular and predictable times, often as a consequence of a period of on-call work (e.g. post take ward rounds). This should be programmed into the working week as scheduled PAs'

So if your on call means that you are in on a Saturday from 8am to 12 midnight then you have just worked 5.5 PA's of direct clinical care.  Have the rest of the week off or annualise it and have a couple of extra weeks off per year!

As a medical emergency is defined generally (but nowhere defined in the T&C's);

'An injury or illness that is acute and poses an immediate risk to a person's life or long term health'

A routine trauma list or similar is not really covered by this definition and it can be argued that it therefore lies outside of the compunction to cover emergency work. As this work also lies outside the 7am to 7pm Monday to Friday working week it should be negotiated with doctors as to whether they wish to cover this work or not. Employers cannot force doctors to cover these sessions.