Gay Mitchell
Question:63 Mr. G. Mitchell asked the Minister for Health and Children if he has plans to increase the number of consultants in rehabilitation medicine; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18406/04]
View answerTuesday, 22 June 2004
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Written answers
My Department had identified the need and requirement for new service developments in rehabilitation medicine in the context of Estimates discussions with the Department of Finance. However, the economic position in 2003 and 2004 has had implications for all aspects of public investment and this was reflected in the Estimates and budget adopted by the Government for those years. The funding allocated to the health services has been applied largely to maintaining existing levels of service across all service programmes.
My Department is aware of the need for a strategic approach to the enhancement of rehabilitation services, encompassing as it does services provided through the entire range of medical disciplines, including paediatrics, orthopaedics, respiratory medicine, cardiology and rheumatology, services for older people and mental health. Rehabilitation can be hospital based or community based and specialist or generalist led. It must be integrated and part of a comprehensive programme which identifies rehabilitation in all its forms as a priority.
The key challenge is to develop an integrated approach to driving and resourcing developments in all of these areas. This integrated approach would necessarily involve the recruitment of additional consultants in rehabilitation medicine, as identified by the Deputy, but could not be done in isolation.
Inevitably additional resources are already in great demand for these discrete services even before shared objectives are considered. My Department will continue to pursue the matter having regard to available resources.