Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 3 May 2017
14. Deputy Louise O'Reilly asked the Minister for Health the exact initial work that has taken place on the 2017 capacity review; the exact arrangements being put in place for the review to date; the timeline of the work of the review for 2017; the reporting as part of the bed capacity review which will be due for the Estimates process; if this will be published; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20210/17]
View answerMy Department has commenced the Health Service Capacity Review over recent weeks. My officials have been progressing work on the Review process, including putting in place the Review structures, drawing up the Terms of Reference, assessing external expertise requirements, and considering options for stakeholder consultation.
The review is being led by my Department and will be overseen by a Steering Group. The Steering Group is in place and includes senior officials from my Department and the Departments of the Taoiseach and Public Expenditure and Reform, the HSE, and experts with a clinical and academic background. The Steering Group met for the first time in March, and is meeting again this month. Also, an independent peer group of international health experts has been established to review and validate the review methodology and findings.
The Terms of Reference for the review are as follows:
a) To determine and review current capacity, both public and private, in the health system and benchmark with international comparators;
b) To determine drivers of future demand and estimate impact on capacity requirements to 2030;
c) To consider and analyse how key reforms to the model of care will impact on future capacity requirements across the system; and
d) To provide an overall assessment, including prioritisation and sequencing, of future capacity requirements on a phased basis for the period 2017 – 2030 at a national and regional level, cognisant of resource availability.
My Department has recently gone out to tender for technical, analytical and engagement expertise to assist in the Review process.
It is essential that this review is progressed sufficiently to enable it to feed into the mid-term review of the capital programme, which will take place later in the year. While the review will consider capacity requirements over the next decade or so, I am also anxious that it also provides a short-term focus and determine how capital and other investment over the coming years can be best targeted, given the current pressures being experienced within our hospital services.
I look forward to the emerging findings later in the year.
