Only a last-minute cast iron guarantee from the Tánaiste and Minister for Health, Ms Harney, that no hospital consultant will be left to personally foot damages in medical negligence cases will stop consultants upping their campaign of industrial action this weekend.
An extraordinary general meeting of the Irish Hospital Consultants Association (IHCA) takes place in Dublin next Sunday to decide what form the action should take.
"The only question now is the form of industrial action and the timing of it," IHCA secretary general Mr Finbarr Fitzpatrick said yesterday.
"The only option really at this stage is withdrawal from elective and outpatient work. You have over 40,000 outpatient appointments per week and the vast majority of them would be cancelled. The urgent ones would have to go through A&E creating further problems there," he said.
IHCA members have been engaged in a limited form of industrial action for the past 12 months since a new way of insuring their practice, namely enterprise liability, was introduced on February 1st last year. Their action has included refusing to co-operate with the Hanly reforms or enter contract negotiations.
The Irish Medical Organisation (IMO) has been balloting its consultant members on industrial action and the outcome of the ballot will be known on Friday. IMO director of industrial relations Mr Fintan Hourihan expects the ballot to be overwhelmingly in favour. Members were very angry, he said.
They are angry that there is still no sign of a deal being worked out between the Department of Health and the Medical Defence Union (MDU), a British company which had been insuring many Irish consultants over the years, over who will foot the bill for historic claims against consultants which have still to come before the courts.
The MDU says it hasn't the resources to cover all these claims and in recent months has refused to offer assistance to 23 Irish consultants who paid it insurance subscriptions over the years.
The consultants fear they could be wiped out financially if both sides leave them uncovered.
While Ms Harney has said no patient or consultant will go uncovered and has committed to paying a solicitor to represent consultants taken to court - the first such case is listed for March - the IHCA and IMO say their legal advice is her letter giving this commitment is not legally binding and therefore insufficient to stop consultants taking industrial action.
Mr Fitzpatrick said he had sought a meeting with Ms Harney in early January. She was aware the e.g.m. was on the horizon and only action by her this week could prevent industrial action going ahead, he said. At the earliest, the action would commence in four weeks.
A spokesman for Ms Harney said last night she would meet the IHCA some time this week. The day has to be confirmed and he said the Tánaiste hoped industrial action could be avoided.