THE HEALTH SERVICE Executive has suspended its search for a new Chief Operations Officer – despite having already drawn up a shortlist of preferred candidates to fill the role.

The Medical Independent reports that the appointment has been suspended while the new government decides on its procedures for abolishing the HSE entirely.

The apparent suspension of the appointment procedure comes despite minutes the HSE Board being told that “good progress was being made in the recruitment process” at its board meeting in February.

At that meeting, the head of the HSE’s remunerations committee said that “a short list of preferred candidates had been developed”.

The job – which is considered the second most senior role at the HSE, after that of the Chief Executive Officer – was advertised with a prospective salary of €183,774.

The Irish Times reported last month that the HSE was keen to have that salary raised to a level above €200,000 – but that the Department of Health had warned it could not breach pay guidelines for public employees in offering a salary of that size.

Questions are now raised over that request – apparently intended at attracting international candidates – given that a satisfactory shortlist had apparently already been put together.

The HSE confirmed to TheJournal.ie this lunchtime that the recruitment had been paused “pending clarity around health service structures as contained in the new Programme for Government”.

The position has been vacant for over two years, and the current recruitment procedure began in October. The role was intended to have a major influence in the proposed restructuring of the national health service.

Read June Shannon’s report in the Medical Independent >