Written Answers Nos. 181-189
181. Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Minister for Health his views on recent comments (details supplied) by the Minister of State with responsibility for older persons regarding the severe financial pressures upon public nursing homes to meet Health Information and Quality Authority physical environment standards, and the July 2015 deadline; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6375/15]
View answer182. Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Minister for Health his views on recent comments by the Minister of State with responsibility for older persons and the director general of the Health Service Executive regarding major works required to bring the executive's long-stay residential care facilities into compliance with the physical environment standards set by the Health Information and Quality Authority, and the July 2015 deadline; and if he will provide reassurance that units of the executive requiring major works are fit for purpose, and his Department has not sought to influence the authority, due to pressures for required residential care beds. [6376/15]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 181 and 182 together.
There are currently 119 public residential units providing a mixture of long-stay and short-stay residential care.
HIQA has indicated that a number of units do not fully meet the standards one would expect to find in a modern nursing home. This is not surprising given the age and structure of many of our public nursing homes. However, there is adequate flexibility available within the terms of existing legislative provisions, and through ongoing discussions between the HSE and HIQA, for solutions to be found.
Notwithstanding the problems that some facilities face with structures and facilities, the vast majority of their residents receive excellent levels of care. Without these public facilities many older people would simply have nowhere to go, other than our acute hospitals which are already under pressure. It is therefore very important that the services provided by public facilities be maintained. In this context the HSE has been working with HIQA over the past number of months to meet the re-registration requirements of these units, and my Department is closely monitoring the situation.
183. Deputy Dan Neville asked the Minister for Health if a motorised electric bed will be provided in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Limerick; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6384/15]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and my officials will follow the matter up.
184. Deputy Patrick O'Donovan asked the Minister for Health if there are grants or assistance available to organisations which wish to buy a defibrillator; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6387/15]
View answerMy Department administers a National Lottery Discretionary Fund from which once-off grants are paid to community and voluntary organisations, providing a range of health related services. If an organisation wishes to make an application for National Lottery Funding they should send in a formal application. Detailed procedures along with the application form will be available shortly on the Department's website at www.health.gov.ie.
185. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for Health his plans to reduce consultants' pay within the public sector; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6390/15]
View answerSignificant steps have been taken to make savings from hospital consultants' pay in recent years. The salary scales for new entrant consultants were reduced by 10% with effect from 1st January 2011. A further reduction of 30% was applied to these scales for those interviewed for posts on or after 1st October 2012. In addition, on 1st July 2013 consultants' pay was reduced in line with the provisions of the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Act 2013. As set out in the Haddington Road Agreement (HRA), these reductions were not applied to the 1 October 2012 pay scales, having regard to the level of reduction already applied.
In addition, the HRA specifically recognised the need to support recruitment and retention of consultants and other doctors. In light of the specific provisions therein, the MacCraith Group was established at that time and recommended last April that "the relevant parties commence, as a matter of urgency, a focused, timetabled IR engagement of short duration to address the barrier caused by the variation in rates of remuneration between new entrant Consultants and their established peers that have emerged since 2012.
The agreement reached between the HSE and the IMO at the LRC on the 7th January 2015 following engagement that also involved my Department and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform is aimed at addressing the barrier caused by the variation in rates of remuneration that have emerged since 2012 between new entrant consultants and their established peers. Sanction has now issued to the HSE to proceed with the implementation of the LRC pay proposal.
An essential component of the approach to addressing the State’s fiscal difficulties has been the firm focus on improving public service efficiency and effectiveness. Consultants have been subject to changes in work practices under the Public Service Agreement and the HRA. These include the range of flexibilities agreed at the LRC in September 2012 to enhance productivity and efficiency and the additional hours under the HRA. I have no plans to reduce consultant pay any further.
186. Deputy Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin asked the Minister for Health the position regarding urgent spinal surgery in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Galway; if that person's operation will be expedited in view of chronic pain and having waited over three years for surgery; if a date for surgery, or an indication of when surgery will occur, will be provided; if the person is currently on a waiting list for a surgical bed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6391/15]
View answerThe National Waiting List Management Policy, A standardised approach to managing scheduled care treatment for in-patient, day case and planned procedures, January 2014, has been developed to ensure that all administrative, managerial and clinical staff follow an agreed national minimum standard for the management and administration of waiting lists for scheduled care. This policy, which has been adopted by the Health Service Executive, sets out the processes that hospitals are to implement to manage waiting lists.
In relation to the particular query raised, as this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and my officials will follow the matter up with them.
187. Deputy Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin asked the Minister for Health if he will provide an update on the development of the review of the Misuse of Drugs Regulations that are aimed at introducing stricter controls on benzodiazepines and z-drugs, non-benzodiazepines; the stage the draft legislation is at; the revised timeframe for enactment of the legislation; the reason there has been such a lengthy delay in developing the legislation; the extra treatment and rehabilitation resources that will be put in place to support persons who suddenly find they can no longer access these drugs, through illicit and-or prescribed sources, thus facing acute withdrawal; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6395/15]
View answerMy Department is reviewing the Misuse of Drugs Regulations with a view to introducing substantial additional controls on certain prescription drugs being traded illicitly, such as benzodiazepines and z-drugs medicines.
The draft Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) Regulation being prepared is the most substantial amendment proposed to the Regulations since they were made in 1988 and involves a major overhaul of certain provisions so as to ensure that regulatory policy addresses international obligations and the evolution of current practice in the use of controlled drugs within the health system. As expected with any major overhaul of regulatory policy, different views have been expressed by different stakeholders in submissions on certain proposals and the work required to complete the necessary amendments is complex and technical in nature.
In addition, you may be aware that there has been a legal challenge to a section of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1977, with a consequent prioritisation for the Department of work relating to this matter.
The objective is to finalise the text of the amending Regulations in the coming months. Once the Regulations are finalised, they are subject to a 3 month EU notification period under the Technical Standards Directive, because of the implications of the proposed regulatory changes on trade in pharmaceutical products.
The HSE addiction services provide a comprehensive substance treatment service oriented towards those with polydrug issues. Problem drug users attending addiction services who are dependent on benzodiazepines or other z-drugs, will also have these issues addressed as part of their treatment.
188. Deputy Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin asked the Minister for Health if he will provide details of overall public and private health spending over the past five years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6397/15]
View answerTotal health expenditure for each of the last 5 years, by both public and private, are detailed in the following table. Figures are presented in millions of Euro. Estimates of private health expenditure are compiled by the Central Statistics Office and include health expenditure by private insurance and out-of-pocket payments by households.
Table: Total Health Expenditure in Ireland, 2010-2014 (millions of Euro)
|
Year |
Public |
Private |
|
2014 |
13,041 (p) |
n/a |
|
2013 |
13,972 |
n/a |
|
2012 |
14,137 |
4,718 |
|
2011 |
14,075 |
4,556 |
|
2010 |
14,818 |
4,418 |
p = provisional
n/a = not available
189. Deputy Áine Collins asked the Minister for Health how an increase in the membership fee for the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland can be justified, given that nurses' wages are being cut; and the way the €6 million is spent (details supplied). [6409/15]
View answerI, along with the Chief Nursing Officer met with the President, Vice-President and Chief Executive of the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland on the 29th January 2015 to discuss the current dispute over the registration fee. I again requested that the Board of NMBI re-engage in discussions with the staff associations, as a matter of urgency. I expressed my concern regarding the implications for the health service and patient safety should the current impasse over the annual retention fee increase continue. I appreciate the registration fee is set by the NMBI which is a self-funding organisation.
The President of the NMBI has stated that NMBI is facing considerable costs arising from changes to the way the laws regulating the professions operate, and also from handling fitness to practice complaints. In addition to supporting the new public fitness to practise structures, he further stated the fee increase will foster excellence in the professions through a more effective Continuing Professional Development (CPD) framework, an enhanced scope of practice and the new Code of Professional Conduct and Ethics for registered nurses and midwives recently published.
I encouraged the NMBI to find an outcome to the current situation which secures the Board’s minimum financial operating requirements but avoids a scenario where nurses and midwives are removed from the Register for non-payment of fees with potential consequences for service availability. Since that meeting the Board has agreed to engage in discussions with the nursing unions with a view to holding further talks, facilitated by a third party, on the means by which the board and staff associations might come to an agreement on the fee structure for the future.
It should be noted that the Board’s accounts are examined by the Comptroller and Auditors General’s Office. In this regard the accounts for 2012 and 2013 were recently published and laid before the Houses of the Oireachtas and are available on the website of NMBI.
I will continue to monitor the situation closely in the interests of patient safety and continuity of care.
