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maltatoday, SUNDAY, 20 SEPTEMBER 2015 News Doctors' collective agreement bars Fenech from public service MATTHEW VELLA THE renowned cardiologist Al- bert Fenech will not be able to work at Mater Dei's cardiology department, because of a collec- tive agreement signed with the doctors' union MAM (Medical Association of Malta) that allows surgeons to work beyond retire- ment only where no suitable can- didate is found to fill their post. MAM president Martin Bal- zan confirmed yesterday that the collective agreement allows Mater Dei to retain doctors after retirement age, on a year by year basis. However the collective agree- ment, signed before the 2013 elections with the MAM, states that the renewal of contracts beyond the statutory retirement age will only be considered "af- ter no suitable candidate would have been found to fill the post in a recruitment process initial- ised at least six months prior to the date of retirement." News of Fenech's retirement was met with concern by pa- tients irked by the retirement clause, which forces surgeons out of the public service unless there is a backlog of operations that requires additional human resources. Yesterday the government is- sued a statement saying that the procedure invoked with respect to Fenech's retirement was laid down in the collective agree- ment. "The MAM's comments to the press confirmed that a medical consultant can be retained after retirement age if a recruitment process for the same position is unsuccessful. "In the case of the cardiology department, a consultant was employed on 1 September, 2014 while another consultant was selected in the same recruit- ment call in August. Today, the department employs enough consultants to be able to oper- ate as efficiently as possible," the government said. It also pointed out that Fenech had his contract renewed in 2014 for one year, albeit on a reduced 20-hour basis every week. Fenech, who was elected an MP in 2013 for the Nationalist Party, has however complained of having been "removed over personal pique and internal poli- tics", accusing cardiology chair- man Robert Xuereb of having effectively ruled him out for any future cardiac surgeries. His departure, although under a strict application of the collec- tive agreement that leaves no el- bow room for veteran surgeons, has baffled patients whose lives were saved by Fenech. The same happened with an- other surgeon in 2011, Labour MP Anthony Zammit, who had requested an extension to his contract at Mater Dei beyond pensionable age, but was turned down. The health ministry had then stated that it was government policy that when consultants reach the age of 61, they are considered as having reached retirement age. "Should there be the need for a replacement, the Health Department issues a call for applications accordingly. Such a procedure provides an opportunity for younger Maltese specialists to achieve a consult- ant status. "In line with this, the policy of the Department of Surgery has been not to extend the contracts of consultants beyond the age of 61. This has applied in the cases of previous surgeons and will also apply in the case of Mr An- thony Zammit. In fact, over the last few weeks a considerable number of Maltese surgeons have already applied and been interviewed," a ministry spokes- person had said. Earlier this week, Opposition leader Simon Busuttil conjured up the case of Albert Fenech's retirement as an example of the way the Labour administration dealt with critics. In 2014, Albert Fenech filed a judicial protest against the par- liamentary secretary for health over being forced into part-time work in what he claimed was a breach of policy. The 61-year-old MP was evi- dently hurt by the decision to have him resign. "I was first stopped from carrying out the very surgical procedures I in- troduced to Malta and which I taught to new surgeons – in- cluding Xuereb himself – and then they reduced the number of operations I could do from two daily to one, until I was com- pletely stopped. "I feel insulted and hurt," Prof. Fenech said. Fenech also said that since the 2013 election of Labour in gov- ernment, "a political decision" was taken to split up the depart- ment between cardiology and cardiac surgery – formerly fused under the chairmanship of Alex Manché – so that another sur- geon could be made departmen- tal head. He added that at least nine out of 11 cardiac consultants op- posed such changes. Since then, Fenech was given a contract that limited his work at Mater Dei to just 20 hours a week to operate on his patients. "I'm like a mechanic without a garage and his tools. They've taken eve- rything away from me." Fenech had words of praise for Mater Dei CEO Ivan Falzon and clinical director Joseph Zarb Adami for their support. "De- spite this, it seems like the cardi- ology chairman has some kind of influence that allows him to do what he wants." Public consultation on film policy launched LAUNCHING a public consul- tation on a film policy, Tourism Minister Edward Zammit Lewis welcomed the drafting of the very first national policy on the film industry – 90 years after the industry was first established. Zammit Lewis said he hoped the policy would work towards giving "a clear sense of direction" to the sector (read more on page 23). "Over the past two years, the film servicing industry in Malta has evolved to become a key eco- nomic contributor to the coun- try, adding that it was crucial to ensure our competitiveness in the field," Zammit Lewis said. According to Zammit Lewis, it is owing to the ample potential of the film sector that the pol- icy – the first of its kind – was drafted. The policy encompasses all areas relevant to the film sec- tor, including the infrastructure, financial incentives, the indig- enous industry, job creation, ed- ucation, skills development and screen tourism. It is estimated that the film in- dustry would have contributed a total of €100 million to the Mal- tese economy by the end of this year – a substantial leap when compared to the €29 million of last year and €5 million in 2013. The increase is complemented by a 45% increase in the number of applicants to the Malta Film Fund when compared to the 2008-2012 period. The policy was put together following the establishment of a consultative committee some months ago, in collaboration with the Malta Film Commission and other entities, among them the University of Malta, MCAST, Chamber of Commerce (along with its Gozitan counterpart), ETC, Malta Audiovisual Asso- ciation (MAVA), PBS, the Malta Tourism Authority (MTA), the Malta Arts Council and other representatives in the industry. Albert Fenech