Holohan’s salary is €30,000 more than other professors working at Trinity

Chief Medical Officer Dr. Tony Holohan will earn €30,000 more than most Trinity College professors when he takes up his new academic role.

The highest cap salary for a professor who works exclusively in teaching and research at the university is 157,613 euros.

Because dr However, since Holohan is paid by the Department of Health – and not directly as an employee of Trinity College – he can keep his $200,000 salary from July as Chief Medical Officer.

Trinity College is bound by civil service salary scales, although there are exceptions where academics with similar arrangements to Dr. Holohan receive higher salaries as they are in high demand and have academic expertise that is in demand worldwide.

Others, who serve both as medical consultants in hospitals and part-time lecturers, are at higher levels.

Trinity needs to make strong arguments and apply for an exemption to go beyond existing salary scales, and this is difficult to achieve.

It comes when Dr. Holohan confirmed that he will not be stepping down from his post as chief medical officer, but will “quit the role.” He said yesterday at a private meeting of the Oireachtas Health Committee that a new chief medical officer will be appointed and he will not return to the post.

After refusing to answer questions for several days, the Department of Health confirmed yesterday that it was Secretary-General Robert Watt who signed the deal allowing Dr. Holohan – mid 50s – will remain as a health ministry worker for his €187,000
Salary during a permanent secondment
trinity.

A spokeswoman for the Department of Health said: “It is important to note that there is no change in compensation or financial benefit to Dr. Holohan yields.”

However, a spokeswoman for the Ministry of Public Expenditure said an investigation into the circumstances of the move was underway.

She noted that Public Expenditure Secretary Michael McGrath and his officials “will be working with colleagues at the Department of Health regarding the posting of the chief medical officer to Trinity College.”

Tánaiste Leo Varadkar told the Dáil that Mr McGrath was not happy with the way the deal was being handled.

The original press release announcing his resignation as CMO last month made no mention that Dr. Holohan remains on the department’s payroll.

And Health Secretary Stephen Donnelly appears to have known nothing about the secondment element of the deal until it was made front-page Irish Independent earlier this week.

The press office of the Ministry of Health was also slow to provide answers to basic questions.

Mr Varadkar said it would have been far better if the agreements had been transparent from the start.

The salary of a chief physician is the same as that of a deputy department secretary.

Department of Public Expenditure is being asked to approve the hiring of a new €187,000 chief medical officer, despite Dr. Holohan, who has not resigned, is on the same salary.

David Cullinane, TD of Sinn Féin, member of the Health Committee who met with Dr. Holohan said he supports the new academic role to strengthen public health, but said the decision not to step down as chief medical officer but to relinquish responsibility “makes no sense”.

Public service secondments are usually referred to as temporary secondments and ‘usually’ last from six months to five years.

dr Holohan told the committee that creating the role was very much his idea – and signaled Trinity was approached first.

He said: “The Department of Health is committed to developing public health capacity for the future.

“While Ireland has performed well in many aspects of its response to the Covid-19 pandemic, there is room for our capacity to develop in this regard.

“The third tier sector will play a key role in providing thought leadership, critical analysis, research and the development of knowledge and skills to better support public health leadership, policy making and public health practice .

“To nurture that potential, I am accepting the Professorship of Public Health Strategy and Leadership at Trinity College Dublin.”

dr Holohan said he will lead collaborations between universities and the health sector and build stronger links with the World Health Organization and European Union agencies.

The Department of Health said yesterday that all staffing arrangements “are the responsibility of the Secretary-General” and that it “had taken into account the general principles of civil service secondment policy” when appointing Dr. Holohan’s move approved.