Health

Tony O’Brien: Unacceptable for state to sit on its hands as health strike bites hard

There is more anger about queues at Dublin Airport than there is about the disruption of vital medical care. We need to get our priorities straight, and soon

The industrial action followed a ballot by the Medical Laboratory Scientists Association that took place in November 2021. The result of the ballot was 94 per cent in favour of industrial action. Pictured: Martina Conlon of MLSA leading a protest outside Leinster House last Wednesday – Gareth Chaney/Collins

Over the last two weeks, tens of thousands of planned medical procedures have had to be cancelled due to industrial action by medical laboratory scientists. These cancellations have disrupted vital medical care and diagnostic tests and have added to the backlogs left in the wake of the enormous service disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Why are we not angry that this has been allowed to happen? Why is there more anger about queues to ...