Niall Blaney
Question:254 Mr. Blaney asked the Minister for Health and Children if a full-time epidural service is available in Letterkenny General Hospital; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28341/03]
Written Answers. - Health Board Services.
Responsibility for the provision of services at Letterkenny General Hospital rests with the North-Western Health Board. My Department has, therefore, asked the chief executive officer of the board to examine the matter raised by the Deputy and to reply to him directly.
Niall Blaney
Question:255 Mr. Blaney asked the Minister for Health and Children the number of occasions in the past two years on which the epidural service was unavailable on request; the reason for its unavailability; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28342/03]
Responsibility for the provision of epidural services across the acute hospital system rests with the Eastern Regional Health Authority, ERHA, and the health boards. My Department has, therefore, requested the regional chief executive of the ERHA and the chief executive officers of the health boards to investigate the position on this matter and to reply directly to the Deputy.
Paul Nicholas Gogarty
Question:256 Mr. Gogarty asked the Minister for Health and Children if there is a limit to the time an individual can spend on a waiting list for admission to public long-term care in the Dublin area before admission is granted. [28368/03]
In general, people are put on a waiting list on a priority basis and their placement is determined by level of dependence, social circumstances, housing conditions, as well as other factors. As a general rule, health boards endeavour to ensure that, where an individual is awaiting admission to long-stay care but cannot be accommodated because of unavailability of beds, alternative arrangements by way of home supports, such as home help, are put in place. The operation of waiting lists is a matter for each individual board.