Written Answers Nos. 166-174
166. Deputy James Browne asked the Minister for Health his views on the findings of the external consultants who carried out a review of the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland (NMBI); and if these findings will have any implications for fitness-to-practise hearings and determinations made by the NMBI in recent years. [21697/16]
View answerFollowing a protected disclosure the Department of Health requested the NMBI to commission a third party review of internal management and governance processes.
As a result of this review two reports have been prepared which identify historical organisational and financial governance shortcomings in the operation of the NMBI. These reports have been accepted by the Board which has acknowledged that appropriate standards and procedures were not always applied to operational and governance matters. The reports have been submitted to the Department of health for consideration and were recently published on the NMBI website. The Department of Health is working closely with the NMBI to ensure that enhanced governance procedures are implemented and that robust management and operational processes are introduced. Notwithstanding the shortcomings raised in these reports the Board has confirmed that its regulatory functions, including all such functions relating to fitness to practice, have always been dealt with in accordance with statutory requirements. The NMBI is already implementing the reports’ recommendations and is committed to ensuring that all necessary steps will be taken to ensure that these events to not re-occur.
A new President and a new interim CEO have been appointed and the post of Director of Finance and Corporate Services has been advertised. The actions being taken on foot of these reports will provide the framework for the Board to perform its functions efficiently and effectively, in an open and transparent manner while delivering on its core responsibilities of public protection and the promotion of the nursing and midwifery professions.
While these problems should not have arisen, they are now being addressed. It is important therefore that they should not undermine or overshadow the extensive work being undertaken by the NMBI as the regulator for the nursing and midwifery profession.
I am confident that the change management programme currently underway in the NMBI will ensure that it delivers on its statutory requirements in an appropriate manner into the future.
167. Deputy James Browne asked the Minister for Health the salary levels which his Department authorised and approved for senior management in the St. John of God organisation. [21698/16]
View answerThe Department of Health Consolidated Salary Scales (1 January 2016), as sanctioned by the Minister for Health, sets out current salaries for all public health service staff in the HSE, or in agencies funded under Section 38 of the Health Act 2004, of which St. John of God Hospitaller Order is one. These salary scales must be strictly adhered to and in no circumstances should an employee receive remuneration in the nature of pay and allowances of any amount greater than the amount prescribed. Non-Exchequer sources of funding may not be used to supplement approved rates of remuneration.
In 2014 Department of Health, in partnership with the Health Service Executive and the Department of Expenditure and Reform, undertook a review of senior management pay in agencies funded under Section 38 of the 2004 Health Act, including the St. John of God Hospitaller Order. One of the aims of the review was to bring clarity to senior management rates of pay in Section 38 agencies. St. John of God Hospitaller Order is now categorised as a Social Care Band 4 agency. The maximum salary for any new CEO of Social Care Band 4 agencies, appointed since 14 September 2015, is now €110,000, as per the Department's Consolidated Salary Scales.
168. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for Health when a person (details supplied) will be scheduled for surgery in Cork University Hospital. [21702/16]
View answerUnder the Health Act 2004, the Health Service Executive (HSE) is required to manage and deliver, or arrange to be delivered on its behalf, health and personal social services. Section 6 of the HSE Governance Act 2013 bars the Minister for Health from directing the HSE to provide a treatment or a personal service to any individual or to confer eligibility on any individual.
The 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 HSE, 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.
169. Deputy John Brassil asked the Minister for Health his plans to review the terms and conditions of Health Service Executive employed chefs and cooks as there has been no review of their terms since 2000 and no increase in their working wage; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21709/16]
View answer217. Deputy John Brassil asked the Minister for Health to request the Health Service Executive to review terms and conditions for its chefs and catering staff, given that there has been no review since 2000, and in turn no salary review; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21886/16]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 169 and 217 together.
Public sector pay agreements have sanctioned general round increases in public sector pay on numerous occasions in the past 16 years. I can confirm that pay scales for the grades the Deputy is querying have risen in line with these general round pay increases as appropriate.
Most recently, the Lansdowne Road Agreement and the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Act 2015 gave effect to adjustments to annualised salaries up to €31,000 from 1st January 2016 which has resulted in an increase in the salaries of many of the catering grades in the health sector.
With regard to the terms and conditions of these grades, I have asked the HSE to respond to the Deputy directly on this matter. If the Deputy has not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days he should contact my Private Office and they will follow up the matter with them.
170. Deputy Louise O'Reilly asked the Minister for Health if he has considered introducing a ban on below invoice cost selling on alcohol products, where alcohol products would not be permitted to be sold at less than the invoice cost price inclusive of value-added tax and excise duty, as a measure to support minimum unit pricing in tackling discounting of alcohol; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21719/16]
View answer171. Deputy Louise O'Reilly asked the Minister for Health the contingency plans in place to curtail the retail of cheap alcohol products at discounted prices should he be unable to immediately implement minimum unit pricing upon enactment of the Public Health (Alcohol) Bill 2015; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21720/16]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 170 and 171 together.
The Public Health (Alcohol) Bill remains a priority for this Government. The Bill is part of a suite of measures agreed on foot of the recommendations in the Steering Group Report on a National Substance Misuse Strategy. The Government approved the publication of the Public Health (Alcohol) Bill and the introduction of the Bill in the Houses of the Oireachtas on the 8 December 2015. The Bill completed Second Stage in the Seanad on the 17 December 2015. The Bill has been restored to the Seanad Order Paper and it is expected that it will commence Committee Stage early in the next term.
The European Court of Justice ruled on 23 December 2015 on proposals by the Scottish Government to introduce Minimum Unit Pricing (MUP). The Court judgment is broadly in line with the Advocate General’s opinion in October last year when it states that the legislation may be justified on the grounds of the protection of health if it is proportionate to the objective pursued, and cannot be achieved by other measures such as taxation.
My Department and the Office of the Attorney General are considering the implications of the judgement. A strong and convincing case can be made in favour of MUP over other measures. I believe that MUP is a proportionate measure and the only measure that would effectively target the widespread access to alcohol that is very cheap relative to its strength. This was backed up by the research conducted by Sheffield University which showed that MUP changes behaviour in those most at risk. On the other hand, the study found that a ban on below-cost selling (implemented as a ban on selling alcohol for below the cost of duty and Value Added Tax) would have a negligible impact on alcohol consumption or related harms.
The Public Health (Alcohol) Bill also provides for the making of regulations to prohibit or restrict a person from engaging in certain promotion practices.
172. Deputy Gino Kenny asked the Minister for Health his plans, if any, to bring prison healthcare services under the responsibility of his Department and operated by the HSE; if he will expedite these plans; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21721/16]
View answerAny proposal to bring prison healthcare services under the responsibility of my Department and operated by the HSE would need to be preceded by an assessment of the scope and provision of existing services to identify any deficits in current provision. An option appraisal of any proposal to change from the existing governance and management would then need to be undertaken before any consideration is given to transferring responsibility for the services from the Irish Prison Service.
173. Deputy Seán Haughey asked the Minister for Health if he will classify myasthenia gravis as a long-term illness; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21731/16]
View answerThe Long Term Illness (LTI) Scheme was established under Section 59(3) of the Health Act, 1970 (as amended). Regulations were made in 1971, 1973 and 1975 specifying the conditions covered by the LTI Scheme, which are: acute leukaemia; mental handicap; cerebral palsy; mental illness (in a person under 16); cystic fibrosis; multiple sclerosis; diabetes insipidus; muscular dystrophies; diabetes mellitus; parkinsonism; epilepsy; phenylketonuria; haemophilia; spina bifida; hydrocephalus; and conditions arising from the use of Thalidomide. There are no plans to extend the list of conditions covered by the LTI Scheme.
Under the Drugs Payment Scheme, no individual or family pays more than €144 per calendar month towards the cost of approved prescribed medicines. The scheme significantly reduces the cost burden for families and individuals incurring ongoing expenditure on medicines.
Under the provisions of the Health Acts, medical cards are provided to persons who are unable, without undue hardship, to arrange health services for themselves and their dependants. In the assessment process, the HSE can take into account medical costs incurred by an individual or a family.
174. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Health the status of a hospital appointment for a person (details supplied). [21736/16]
View answerUnder the Health Act 2004, the Health Service Executive (HSE) is required to manage and deliver, or arrange to be delivered on its behalf, health and personal social services. Section 6 of the HSE Governance Act 2013 bars the Minister for Health from directing the HSE to provide a treatment or a personal service to any individual or to confer eligibility on any individual.
The 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 HSE, 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 the Deputy has not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days he should contact my Private Office and my officials will follow the matter up.
