Vol. 466 No. 5
62 Mr. Callely asked the Minister for Health the concerns, if any, which have been brought to his attention regarding mandatory reporting of child abuse; whether the issue of breaching the confidentiality of the patient/doctor relationship has been considered; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11738/96]
The issue of the breaching of the confidentiality of the patient/doctor relationship was one of the many issues I highlighted in Putting Children First — A Discussion Document on Mandatory Reporting which I launched on 29 February last. The discussion document highlighted many of the complex issues involved in mandatory reporting. I invited interested parties to make submissions on the issues raised in the discussion document, as well as on any strategies which they felt might be of benefit in tackling child abuse.
The closing date for the receipt of submissions was 31 May 1996. Over eighty submissions were received on the subject and I am very pleased with the thoughtful and caring nature of the responses. I, and my officials, will closely examine all submissions and it is my intention to provide a forum later in the year to enable professionals and other interested parties to come together to debate the issues involved in mandatory reporting in greater detail. I hope to be in a position to announce more specific details shortly.
