Clare Daly
Question:49. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Health if he is satisfied with persons, who were formally employed by the Health Service Executive, being involved in investigations into their practices. [8042/15]
View answerWednesday, 25 February 2015
Questions (49)
Written answers
The HSE has a National Safety Incident Management Policy which sets out the steps to be taken when an investigation is required. In addition, the HSE has a range of processes in place which provide guidance on these matters including, the National Policy for Safeguarding Vulnerable Persons at Risk of Abuse, Trust in Care etc.
The HSE’s National Safety Incident Management Policy was updated in 2014 and is in line with international practice in patient safety and risk management. It requires that those who conduct such investigations are competent investigators who have the requisite training and skills required. Investigators should not have responsibility for the service they investigate, nor should they have been involved in the incident that is being investigated. It does not prevent a person who is or was an employee of the HSE from becoming involved in a review or an investigation of a service managed or funded by the HSE.
In many circumstances, clinical directors and other senior clinicians will, as part of learning and organisational improvement, undertake investigations, look-backs and audits. Furthermore, the HSE as the primary health service employer will employ the majority of individuals in this jurisdiction who would have the specialist skills and expertise required for any given review or investigation. When independence from the HSE is required, the HSE policy does provide for national and international experts to be part of reviews. There are arrangements in place with national and international professional bodies for identifying these experts and this further contributes to the independence of the experts who are participating in these reviews.