Matheson, Carson McDowell and Hayes solicitors have signed a letter co-ordinated by the Medical Protection Society (MPS) and sent to health minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill and justice minister Jim O’Callaghan.

It has also been co-signed by Patients for Patient Safety Ireland, the Irish Patients Association, Patient Empowerment, the Irish College of General Practitioners, the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, the College of Anaesthesiologists of Ireland, the Irish College of Ophthalmologists, the Association of Anaesthetists, the Irish Dental Association and the Irish Dental Hygienists Association.

Ireland’s slow claims process “adds insult to injury” for patients while also having a negative impact on the mental wellbeing of healthcare professionals, the letter argues.

An average claim in Ireland takes 56 per cent longer than in the UK and costs 191 per cent more in legal fees, according to the Medical Protection Society.

The letter states: “The delivery of pre-action protocols is long overdue and has been a commitment of successive ministers for both justice and health departments. The provisions already exist in section 219 of the Legal Services (Regulation) Act 2015.

“As organisations working with health and dental professionals, patients, lawyers and researchers, we would welcome your focus on this crucial tort reform and to take the final steps needed to ensure it is implemented without delay.

“Their implementation would go some way towards fixing a system that does not currently benefit anyone involved.

“The ambition of our combined request of you, in your ministerial roles, is to use the gift of your positions to relieve needless suffering for all concerned.”