Earlier this year, Professors Adrian Agius of Malta and John Fenton of Ireland brought a petition on patient safety to the European Union. They were concerned about questions raised by European training requirements within the context of freedom of movement within EU law. Were European patients informed and protected when consulting a specialist in ORL? And would specialists practicing outside their area of competence be legally liable for their surgical outcomes?
Following an oral presentation by Professors Agius and Fenton to the EU Parliament Petitions Committee in Brussels on the 14 May 2025, the initial objectives were achieved as every MEP present from each political grouping voted to support petition 1171/2024 and to keep it open.
The petition expressed concern at the OMFS (oromaxillofacial surgery) European training requirements that had been controversially approved in October 2021 by the UEMS council. These were supported by UEMS executive, where 40% of the curriculum concerned competencies long held by ORL, without any assurance as to the quality of this training or its assessment. It was reaffirmed at the meeting that the European Union of Medical Specialists (UEMS) is a private NGO with no formal role in defining surgical practice in Europe.
The petitioners thank Peter Agius (MEP Malta) and Cynthia Ní Mhurchú (MEP Ireland) for their assistance with this petition and sharing the concerns about patient safety.
The live recording of the debate can be accessed here:
https://www.swisstransfer.com/d/aedc6f8c-b1d9-41bf-8a99-599e74898385
For those wishing to show support, on the following link:
https://www.europarl.europa.eu/petitions/en/petition/content/1171%252F2024
(Supporters must register initially, then will receive an email and link, with a further specific search for 1171/2024, click ‘support’, then again ‘support’).
