Medical specialists are carrying out too many operations, wasting up to €1.3bn a year, according to research carried out on behalf of the health ministry.

In some hospitals, specialists carry out four times as many operations for the same symptoms as others, the research shows.
Specialists who carry out a lot of operations often tend to be using outdated techniques, Marc Berg of the Plexus research group told the NRC. ‘They do routine things which they learned years ago while in training,’ Berg said. Specialists are also unwilling to criticise each other, he said.
Money also pays a role. Many specialists are paid according to the number of operations they carry out.
The researchers looked at four treatments dealing with an enlarged prostate, cataracts, a slipped disk and tonsil problems. In particular, the variation in the number of tonsil operations is so great that spending could be cut by 32% if the the operation rate was standardised, the researchers said.