Case study

UK and Ireland health services

Helping reduce junior doctor working hours - Implementing the EC Working Time Directive in the UK and Ireland

Junior doctors in the UK and Ireland have historically worked very long hours - often more than 70 hours per week. This has serious implications for standards of patient care and safety, as well as staff morale.

However, this situation is changing. The EC Working Time Directive places a legal requirement on member states to reduce the working hours of doctors in training to 48 hours per week by 2009. A reduction in hours of this scale, while at the same maintaining levels of patient care and ensuring appropriate training and education is provided to junior doctors, represents a major challenge for member states.

PA has worked with the health services in both the UK and Ireland to help hospital clinicians and managers to reduce the working hours of their junior doctors.