Commissioner for Health disappointed with ministry as pending cases and ignored recommendations grow
The Ombudsman’s recommendations to the Ministry for Health are taking “far too long to be implemented, if ever implemented,” while replies to the first request for comments “take ages,” Commissioner for Health Charles Messina noted as he expressed his disappointment with the ministry’s approach to the office, especially with regards to ignored recommendations, in the Ombudsman’s Annual Report for 2017.
“[Messina] is also still hoping that he will, someday, receive the full text concerning the privatisation of health services, more so now that the private administrators of the Gozo General Hospital, Karen Grech and Saint Luke’s have changed again.
“The full text of the contracts was given, by the Ministry for Health, to the Auditor General, however, in breach of the Ombudsman Act, not to the Ombudsman,” the text read.
The Ministry for Health currently tops the list of pending feedback from the ministries by 34 (92%) cases which are pending some sort of reply or feedback; also referencing a “lack of reply from the Department of Health.”
In fact, 90 per cent of his 61 pending cases are against the ministry itself, while 45 per cent of the cases received in 2017 remained pending.
“It appears that the liaison officer, notwithstanding his efforts, is not succeeding in getting the necessary feedback and urgent
comments from the officers concerned, especially when it comes to those who are superior to his grade,” the report said.
The Commissioner also noted that he is yet to receive any feedback from the Ministry for Health regarding treatment for Macular Degeneration.
Departments are able to ‘refuse Ombudsman’s decisions or leave the status quo’
In his first term (Messina was reappointed in September 2017), the Commissioner found that the Ombudsman’s Office does not have the authority to see that its decisions are being implemented as departments concerned are able to “refuse the recommendations or leave the status quo.”
He referenced two issues, which concern a number of patients, where “although the Ministry for Health knew that it was in the wrong and was in breach of the law, it persisted to do nothing because of lack of funds.”
The first concerns the treatment of patients who suffer from Hepatitis C which has been pending since December 2012. The second involves a recommendation made following an Own Initiative Investigation through which it was recommended to start a Hearing Screening Programme that concerns Neonates.
“Such a screening programme would considerably improve the quality of life to babies who are found to have a hearing problem. Such babies would tomorrow be part of the future generation.”
During 2017, the Commissioner for Health ignited preliminary investigations into the treatment for IVF, medicines for rare diseases. treatment of patients abroad, new case-out patient waiting lists at Mater Dei Hospital, the inclusion of Stalevo, and manure clamps regulations.
Recommendations included the inclusion of a cancer drug in the government formulary list; an amendment to protocols which cause discrimination between patients, such as analogue insulin not given to type 2 diabetic patients; and a refund of expenses incurred by patients for purchase of medicines to which they were entitled in terms of the Social Security Act.
10 cases pending for more than six months
The Commissioner received 83 complaints in 2017 (38 from the public and 45 from Health Sector employees), up from 82 in 2016 (45 from the public and 37 from Health Sector employees).
Out of the 83, 70 complaints were directed specifically at the Ministry for Health. Twenty-one cases were either sustained or partly sustained and 16 cases were not sustained.
A majority of employees (11) made complaints regarding alleged injustices at their place of work. Six employees also complained about a refused salary scale, while five complained regarding unfair selection board decisions.
As shown in the report, by the end of the year under review, of the 37 cases, 10 were pending for over six months, while a further 13 were pending for four to five months.