Jack Chambers
Question:78. Deputy Jack Chambers asked the Minister for Health his proposals to develop facilities at Cappagh National Orthopaedic Hospital; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38020/16]
View answerHospital Facilities
Questions (78)
Written answers
Cappagh Orthopaedic Hospital is part of the Ireland East Group and is Ireland's major centre for elective orthopaedic surgery. The hospital provides the full range of orthopaedic services including major joint replacement (ankle, hip, knee, shoulder, elbow, and wrist), spinal surgery, primary bone tumour service, paediatric orthopaedics and sports injuries.
Recent developments at the hospital include the new Post Anaesthetic Care Unit (PACU) which I opened in September of this year. This was the final stage of the theatre modernisation at the hospital and it was preceded by the development of three new state of the art theatres in 2011, one specifically designed with a large canopy for complex cases, the development of the Central Decontamination Unit in 2014 and the refurbishment of Theatres 3 and 4 in 2016.
In addition, the €40 million Winter Initiative 2016/2017 recently announced includes a €7m fund for a targeted waiting list programme for orthopaedics, spinal and scoliosis procedures. Specific actions include provision of €3m for an additional 570 orthopaedic procedures at the National Tertiary Referral Centre at Cappagh with the objective of achieving the 18 months waiting list target by year end.
Emergency Departments
Questions (79)
Bernard Durkan
Question:79. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Health the extent to which he expects the accident and emergency services to cope with the overcrowding situation in view of the problems that have arisen in recent years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37969/16]
View answerWritten answers
Trolley numbers nationally have been high in November due to increased ED attendances, greater incidence of infection in several hospitals and a high rate of elective activity in hospitals to address waiting lists.
It is unacceptable that patients wait on trolleys for long periods especially elderly and vulnerable patients. Over the coming months it is essential that the health service plans effectively for expected surges in emergency care demand. My Department, working with the HSE, has been driving a range of measures to improve patient ED experience times.
Following the formation of Government an additional €40 million was provided to assist in the management of winter pressures. Utilising this additional funding the HSE developed the Winter Initiative Plan 2016 – 2017 which was published in September. Key aspects of this plan are being implemented at hospital and community services level across the country.
Today the HSE convened a Winter Initiative Health Summit and I met with Hospital Group CEOs, as well as hospital and Community Health Organisation managers, to reinforce the importance of driving key performance improvements across primary, acute and social care to reduce ED overcrowding and to plan for expected surges in demand in our EDs in the New Year.
I can assure the Deputy that there is a very strong focus on reducing ED overcrowding in all my interactions with the HSE, hospitals and the wider health service.
Question No. 80 answered with Question No. 51.
Question No. 81 answered with Question No. 25.
Disabilities Assessments
Questions (82, 85)
Gino Kenny
Question:82. Deputy Gino Kenny asked the Minister for Health the reason that, according to the HSE, in cases of completed applications received for an assessment of need under the Disability Act 2005, between 2011 and 2015, less than two thirds of assessment reports were completed and of those completed, less than two thirds had service statements completed despite the clear requirements of the Act to do so; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37965/16]
View answer
Margaret Murphy O'Mahony
Question:85. Deputy Margaret Murphy O'Mahony asked the Minister for Health the reason so many children are not getting assessments for disability within the time set down in the Disability Act 2005; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38017/16]
View answerWritten answers
I propose to take Questions Nos. 82 and 85 together.
The Government is committed to providing services and supports for people with disabilities which will empower them to live independent lives, provide greater independence in accessing the services they choose, and enhance their ability to tailor the supports required to meet their needs and plan their lives. This commitment is outlined in the Programme for Partnership Government, which is guided by two principles: equality of opportunity and improving the quality of life for people with disabilities.
It is important to note that HSE has recognised that early intervention services and services for school-aged children with disabilities need to be improved and organised more effectively and this process is well under way. I would like to emphasise that there has been continual additional investment in this area in order to support the HSE as it faces significant challenges in respect of meeting the statutory time-frames which apply to the assessment of need process.
Since 2014, the roll out of the Progressing Disability Services for Children and Young People (0-18s) Programme has entailed targeted investment of €14m and the provision of 275 additional therapy staff, to increase services for children with all disabilities. The HSE is currently engaged in a reconfiguration of existing therapy resources to geographic based teams for children (0-18 years). The objective of the new model of assessment and intervention is to provide one clear referral pathway for all children (0-18s), irrespective of their disability, where they live or the school they attend.
It is expected that this re-configuration of services will have a significant impact on our ability to meet the needs of children and young people in a more efficient, effective and equitable manner and, in particular, on our ability to comply with the statutory time-frames set out in the Disability Act and the accompanying regulations.
National Treatment Purchase Fund Waiting Times
Questions (83)
Billy Kelleher
Question:83. Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Minister for Health his Department’s estimated impact on waiting times of the additional €15 million in 2017 for the National Treatment Purchase Fund; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38014/16]
View answerWritten answers
This Government is committed to improving waiting times for patients. While recognising that demand for acute hospital services has increased this year with a 4% increase in inpatient and day case activity to end October compared with the same period last year, the important issue for patients is how long they wait.
Budget 2017 provides for the treatment of our longest-waiting patients. €20m is being allocated to the National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF) in 2017, rising to €55m in 2018. Planning of these initiatives is currently being finalised with the NTPF.
Approval has been granted to the NTPF on the basis of a proposal which outlines the use of a first tranche of funding, in the region of €5m, for an initiative focusing on day case procedures. The NTPF and HSE are currently engaging regarding a proposal for the use of the remaining €10m for patient treatment. This gradual, stepped approach will enable the NTPF to build new operational capacity towards its 2018 allocation.
In addition, it is intended that the NTPF's proposal will free up capacity in the public hospital system to provide treatment to those patients awaiting inpatient treatment, whose requirements are more complex and thus more suited to the public hospital system.
I will shortly be asking the HSE to develop a Waiting List Action Plan for 2017 working collaboratively with the NTPF to address inpatient, day case and outpatient waiting times.
Hospital Waiting Lists
Questions (84)
Mary Butler
Question:84. Deputy Mary Butler asked the Minister for Health the reason 1,425 persons were waiting more than a year for inpatient and day case treatment in Waterford University Hospital in October 2014; and the reason the numbers waiting more than a year have jumped so much since April 2014. [38023/16]
View answerWritten answers
This Government is committed to improving waiting times for patients. While recognising that demand for acute hospital services has increased this year with a 4% increase in inpatient and day case activity to end October compared with the same period last year, the important issue for patients is how long they wait.
According to the October waiting list data published by the NTPF, 83% of patients on the inpatient/day case waiting list for University Hospital Waterford are waiting less than 15 months. The September HSE Management Data Report points to a 2.7% increase in in-patient discharges and a 10% increase in day cases compared with the same period in 2015.
In August, I asked the HSE to develop a Waiting List Action Plan for 2016 to reduce by year end the number of patients waiting over 18 months on the inpatient/day case waiting list. Since then, approximately 6,500 patients have been removed nationally from the waiting list. Additional funding of €11.25m has been allocated under the Winter Initiative in order to support patient treatment under this Action Plan.
As part of the Winter Initiative an additional five home care packages per week will be funded to support timely discharge from University Hospital Waterford. This funding will provide for 15 additional surge capacity beds and two complex delayed discharge cases will be transferred from the hospital by the end of the Winter Initiative reporting period.
Finally, the Budget 2017 provides for the treatment of our longest-waiting patients. €20 million is being allocated to the NTPF, rising to €55 million in 2018. Planning of this initiative is at an advanced stage by the NTPF, my Department and the HSE.
Question No. 85 answered with Question No. 82.
General Practitioner Services Provision
Questions (86)
John Brassil
Question:86. Deputy John Brassil asked the Minister for Health his Department’s estimate of the number of additional general practitioners that will be required over the next decade; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38021/16]
View answerWritten answers
The Programme for Partnership Government commits to increasing the number of GP training places by 100 over the next five years to 259 places annually. In 2016, the GP training intake increased from 157 to 172 places and I am anxious to achieve further increases in future years.
In September 2015, the HSE published a medical workforce planning report entitled Medical Workforce Planning - Future Demand for General Practitioners 2015 - 2025. The report identified a current unmet service demand of around 500 GPs, and estimated that there will be a shortage of around 493 GPs in Ireland by 2025 if the impact of population ageing on GP consultation rates alone is considered. This estimate was based on the assumption that there would be no inward migration of GPs and that the GP training intake would remain at the 2015 level of 157 training places annually. As I have indicated, the Government is committed to increasing GP trainee places on a phased basis.
Further efforts undertaken in recent years to increase the number of practising GPs include changes to the entry provisions to the GMS scheme to accommodate more flexible/shared GMS/GP contracts, and to the retirement provisions for GPs under the GMS scheme, allowing GPs to hold GMS contracts until their 72nd birthday, as well as the introduction of an enhanced supports package for rural GP practices. These steps should help to address the future demand for GPs by enticing GPs who may have ceased practising for family or other reasons back into the workforce, facilitating GPs to work past the standard retirement age and encouraging more GPs to work in rural areas.
In addition, I am cognisant of the need for a new GP services contract which will help modernise our health service and develop a strengthened primary care sector, and health service management have already progressed a number of significant measures through engagement with GP representatives. The GP contracts review process will, inter alia, seek to introduce further measures aimed at making general practice a fulfilling and rewarding career option into the future.
Emergency Departments
Questions (87)
Mick Barry
Question:87. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Minister for Health his plans to alleviate the overcrowding crisis at Cork University Hospital; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37993/16]
View answerWritten answers
Trolley numbers nationally have been high in November due to increased ED attendances, greater incidence of infection in several hospitals and a high rate of elective activity in hospitals to address waiting lists.
It is unacceptable that patients wait on trolleys for long periods especially elderly and vulnerable patients. Over the coming months it is essential that the health service plans effectively for expected surges in emergency care demand. My Department, working with the HSE, has been driving a range of measures to improve patient ED experience times.
Following the formation of Government an additional €40 million was provided to assist in the management of winter pressures. Utilising this additional funding the HSE developed the Winter Initiative Plan 2016 – 2017 which was published in September. Key aspects of this plan are being implemented at hospital and community services level across the country.
Cork University Hospital is one of nine focus sites which have been identified as requiring particular support in order to improve ED performance. The HSE's Special Delivery Unit liaises directly on a regular basis with these and other hospitals to drive improvements in ED performance.
Today the HSE convened a Winter Initiative Health Summit and I met with Hospital Group CEOs, as well as hospital and Community Health Organisation managers, to reinforce the importance of driving key performance improvements across primary, acute and social care to reduce ED overcrowding and to plan for expected surges in demand in our EDs in the New Year.
I can assure the Deputy that there is a very strong focus on reducing ED overcrowding in all my interactions with the HSE, hospitals and the wider health service.
Question No. 88 answered with Question No. 54.
Occupational Therapy
Questions (89)
Bobby Aylward
Question:89. Deputy Bobby Aylward asked the Minister for Health the action being taken to address the fact that the latest figures indicate some 698 persons under 18 years of age are waiting more than a year for a first-time assessment for occupational therapy in counties Cork and Kerry. [38034/16]
View answerWritten answers
As this question relates to service matters, I have arranged for the question to be referred to the Health Service Executive (HSE) for direct reply to you.
Health Services Data
Questions (90)
Louise O'Reilly
Question:90. Deputy Louise O'Reilly asked the Minister for Health the data that exist relating to the number of treatments commissioned from the private sector versus the number of treatments carried out; the number, type and value of services and surgeries commissioned from the private sector; the number, type and value, the cost to the State and savings to the State of services and surgeries carried out by the private sector; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37852/16]
View answerWritten answers
Treatments have been commissioned from the private sector by both the National Treatment Purchase Fund and the HSE in targeted initiatives to reduce waiting list numbers.
The NTPF was established on a statutory basis in 2004 and previously arranged for the provision of hospital treatment to classes of persons determined by the Minister. Since 2011 this function has been suspended.
I include with the official report a tabular statement setting out details of the annual budget of the NTPF and the number of patients treated per annum since its inception.
The additional detailed information sought by the Deputy relating to patient treatment in the private sector is not available to me at this time. However, I have asked the NTPF to provide me with the information requested and I will forward it to the Deputy as soon as it becomes available.
In relation to treatments commissioned from the private sector by the HSE, as this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly.