Written Answers Nos. 1168-1187
1168. Deputy John Curran asked the Minister for Health the number of girls in each HSE CHO area who received the human papillomavirus, HPV, vaccine in each of the years 2013 to 2016 and to date in 2017; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38168/17]
View answerAs this is a service matter, it has been referred to the Health Service Executive for attention and direct reply to the Deputy.
1169. Deputy John Curran asked the Minister for Health the steps he is taking to increase the uptake of the HPV vaccine among girls; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38169/17]
View answerCervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer in women worldwide. Each year in Ireland around 300 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer and 100 die from the disease. All cervical cancers are linked to high risk Human Papillomavirus (HPV) types. In 2009 the National Immunisation Advisory Committee (NIAC) recommended HPV vaccination for all 12 year old girls to reduce their risk of cervical cancer and in September 2010 the HPV vaccination programme was introduced for all girls in first year of second level schools.
Unfounded claims have been made of an association between HPV vaccination and a number of conditions experienced by a group of young women - there is no scientific evidence that the vaccine causes long-term illnesses.
However, these claims led to a significant drop in uptake rates of the HPV vaccine from 87% in 2014/15 to 72% in 2015/16. Provisional figures released by the HSE indicate that the uptake rates for the current year have fallen further to 50%.
The Irish Cancer Society state, that based on national cancer statistics the drop in the rate of uptake to 50% for the 2016-2017 academic year, will have the following consequences:
- The death of at least 40 girls with cervical cancer who did not receive the HPV vaccine;
- A further 100 girls will develop cervical cancer and will require life altering treatment and;
- An additional 1,000 girls will require invasive therapy to prevent the precancerous form of HPV.
One of the most important things we can do is to provide accurate and credible information to enable parents to take a fully informed decision concerning HPV vaccination. We know that HPV vaccine works and that many countries have seen significant decreases of pre-cancer of the cervix as a result of vaccination. The safety and effectiveness of the vaccine is endorsed by Irish and international scientific and medical institutions.
The HSE launched its information campaign for HPV vaccination as part of the 2017/18 Schools Immunisation Programme on 30 August.
The HSE has produced a range of information materials aimed at ensuring parents and students receive accurate information concerning the vaccines, the conditions they prevent and potential adverse reactions. These materials include:
- Letter to parents concerning the programme;
- Facts about HPV Vaccine and Cervical Cancer leaflet;
- Facts about HPV Vaccine and Cervical Cancer leaflet for teachers;
- HPV Vaccine Key Facts leaflet for GPs;
- Poster;
- Memorandum on HSE Administrative role and responsibilities for the Schools Immunisation Programme 2017/2018.
All of these materials have been produced in both English and Irish language versions.
The HSE has worked with a small group of volunteers, girls and young women who have had the vaccine, mums whose daughters have been protected to produce a number of films in which they tell about their experience. Here are the links to the films:
- I’m relieved she’s protected – from the mums - https://youtu.be/vgE89Z84X5kI’ve got the HPV Vaccine – from the girls https://youtu.be/CwReNjXp-CQ .
- Get the Vaccine, Protect Our Future - https://youtu.be/Avx1e-EtsWM .
- 90 will die from Cervical Cancer every year – https://youtu.be/AiC8SI7jWAA.
The HSE is investing in marketing communications at the time when parents are receiving information packs and consent forms in school. This will involve:
- Three weeks of national and regional radio advertising from 30 August;
- Social media promotion;
- Digital search advertising - Google Adwords; Organic social media posts – Facebook, Twitter.
The Information campaign will support the vaccination programme which starts in schools this month. It involves information packs for parents which are scientifically accurate and endorsed by Irish and international bodies. In addition information is available for primary care facilities and pharmacies. The HSE has also a website – www.hpv.ie.
The parents of all eligible girls are strongly encouraged to access this information and ensure that their daughters receive this important cancer preventing vaccine.
1170. Deputy John Curran asked the Minister for Health the number of new occupational therapists who have been placed in the Dublin west area to deal with the high number of persons waiting for first-time assessments; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38170/17]
View answerAs this question relates to service matters, I have arranged for the question to be referred to the Health Service Executive (HSE) for direct reply.
1171. Deputy John Curran asked the Minister for Health the number of occupational therapists placed in the HSE Dublin west CHO7 area in each of the years 2012 to 2016 and to date in 2017; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38171/17]
View answerAs this question relates to service matters, I have arranged for the question to be referred to the Health Service Executive (HSE) for direct reply.
1172. Deputy John Curran asked the Minister for Health his views on the fact that there has only been a reduction of 16 persons out of 258 on the full spinal waiting list at Our Lady's Children's Hospital, Crumlin; the steps he is taking to reduce this waiting list; the number of persons expected to be on this waiting list at the end of 2017 following the appointment of a new orthopaedic surgeon in September 2017; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38172/17]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly.
1173. Deputy John Curran asked the Minister for Health the progress being made in providing a primary care centre in Clondalkin village, Dublin 22; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38176/17]
View answerAs the HSE has responsibility for the provision, along with the maintenance and operation of Primary Care Centres and other Primary Care facilities, the Executive has been asked to reply directly to the Deputy.
1174. Deputy John Curran asked the Minister for Health the progress being made in providing a primary care centre in Lucan; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38177/17]
View answerAs the HSE has responsibility for the provision, along with the maintenance and operation of Primary Care Centres and other Primary Care facilities, the Executive has been asked to reply directly to the Deputy.
1175. Deputy John Curran asked the Minister for Health the progress being made in providing a primary care centre in Rowlagh; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38178/17]
View answerThe HSE has advised that the design team report has been completed. The Executive is finalising the purchase agreement of a site at Collinstown Park School, subject to planning permission being granted for the development.
1176. Deputy John Curran asked the Minister for Health further to Parliamentary Question No. 237 of 18 May 2017, the number of home care package hours available in the HSE CHO 7 area for 2016 and 2017; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38179/17]
View answerAs this is a service matter I have again asked the Health Service Executive to respond directly to the Deputy as soon as possible.
1179. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for Health the status of a capital funding commitment for a project (details supplied) in County Cork. [38223/17]
View answerFunding for Enable Ireland Children's Centre, Cork must be considered in the context of the future capital envelope available to the health service and the overall priorities for future service developments. The HSE will continue to apply the available funding for infrastructure development in the most effective way possible to meet current and future needs, having regard to the level of commitments and the costs to completion already in place.
1180. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Health the status of a home help for a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38225/17]
View answerAs this is a service matter I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond directly to the Deputy as soon as possible.
1181. Deputy John Curran asked the Minister for Health if an Irish citizen who lives in the UK can gain access to haemodialysis as a public patient in a private hospital in the event that a public hospital is fully booked at time of travel to Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38230/17]
View answerUnder EU Regulations, all persons ordinarily resident in the EU are entitled to apply for a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC). The EHIC certifies that the holder has the right to receive emergency healthcare during a temporary stay in any EU country as well as Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Iceland. This right is guaranteed to all persons who are covered by the public healthcare system of these countries. The European Health Insurance Card holder has the right to receive necessary treatment in the host Member State's public healthcare system on the same terms and at the same cost as nationals of the State concerned. Renal units in this State normally accommodate dialysis for those presenting a EHIC once contact has been made with them in advance of the patient travelling here and the patient's clinicians provide all relevant patient information to the consultants in the receiving renal unit here.
Under bilateral arrangements, patients from the UK can bring evidence of UK residence instead of an EHIC.
For further information on accessing treatments under the EHIC in Ireland a person can contact the Health Service Executive EU Regulations Office. Their contact details are:
EU Regulations Office,
St. Joseph's Hospital,
Mulgrave Street,
Limerick.
Telephone: 061 461 105.
Email: euregulations@hse.ie.
1182. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for Health the position regarding employees of section 39 organisations benefiting from pay increases provided for in national pay agreements, including the proposed extension of the Lansdowne Road agreement; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38231/17]
View answerSection 39 organisations are not encompassed by the Public Service Stability Agreements and are therefore not obliged to pass on any pay reductions to their staff members or to provide for any pay restoration that may be negotiated as part of these public service agreements. Neither the HSE nor the Department of Health has any role in determining the pay rates or terms and conditions of Section 39 staff. It is a matter for Section 39 organisations to negotiate salaries with their staff as part of their employment relationship and within the overall funding available for the delivery of agreed services.
1183. Deputy John Brassil asked the Minister for Health if he will approve and expedite the orthodontic treatment for a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38234/17]
View answerAs this is a service matter, it has been referred to the Health Service Executive for direct reply to the Deputy.
1184. Deputy Kevin O'Keeffe asked the Minister for Health the position regarding the compassionate access scheme for cannabis-based treatment; the timeframe for its implementation; if his attention has been drawn to the ongoing hardship that persons (details supplied) are continuing to go through in view of the fact they have been separated from their family in order to access a specific treatment in the Netherlands; the measures he has taken and plans to assist the persons in this matter; if his Department has had contact with the patient's medical team in the Netherlands; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38235/17]
View answerOn foot of the conclusions of the Health Products Regulatory Authority’s (HPRA) report, ‘Cannabis for Medical Use – A Scientific Review’, which was published in February 2017, I undertook to establish an access programme for cannabis-based treatments for patients, under the care of a medical consultant, for certain medical conditions including refractory epilepsy. As the Access Programme will be administered by clinicians, I have set up a clinical expert group to draw up clinical guidelines for physicians, pharmacists and patients. This group is due to report shortly and it is expected the Cannabis Access Programme will come into operation later this year.
Pending the establishment of the Access Programme, if a consultant believes that any patient, child or adult, requires a controlled substance that is not a legal medicine, that consultant can seek a licence from my Department. As of now, there are no licence applications pending in my Department. The role of the Minister for Health in relation to the licence application process only comes into play once a valid licence application has been received from a clinician, for a named patient, where the course of cannabis-based treatment has been endorsed by the patient’s consultant who is responsible for the management of the patient, and who is prepared to monitor the effects of the treatment over time.
Licence applications received from medical consultants will be processed immediately.
In the case referred to by the Deputy, my Department officials have advised the patient’s carers that it is solely a matter for the clinician, in consultation with their patient and the patient’s carers, to decide on an appropriate course of treatment for his/her patient and that it would be wholly inappropriate for a Minister for Health or his Department officials to seek to instruct or influence any doctor to prescribe a particular treatment for a patient.
Similarly, clinical treatment plans should be determined and directed between clinicians through normal healthcare professional communication pathways, regardless of where those clinicians are located. The sharing of such clinical information may help to ensure the treating consultant in Ireland has appropriate access to a professionally documented clinical and medication history for the patient they are treating and could assist in the consultant’s clinical decision making process.
1185. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Health the status of a cataract operation for a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38270/17]
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 scheduling of appointments for patients is a matter for the hospital to which the patient has been referred. Should a patient's general practitioner consider that the patient's condition warrants an earlier appointment, he or she should take the matter up with the consultant and the hospital involved. In relation to the specific case raised, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly.
1186. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Health the status of a cataract operation for a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38271/17]
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.
1187. Deputy John Brassil asked the Minister for Health the reason for the discrepancy in the estimated savings from a framework agreement with an organisation and his Department as reported in a recent report by a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38274/17]
View answerThe new four-year Framework Agreement on the Supply and Pricing of Medicines, signed in July 2016, which is available at http://www.ipha.ie/alist/ipha-hse-agreement.aspx, is an agreement between the State and the Irish Pharmaceutical Healthcare Association (IPHA), and is expected to deliver approximately €600 million in savings over the lifetime of the Agreement from IPHA companies and €150 million in savings from non-IPHA companies. The savings were calculated, with the support of an international consultancy firm, on the basis that the alternative to an agreement was no agreement. The option of continuing with the current agreement, as argued in the paper referenced by the Deputy was not an available or viable option.
The savings are a function of the terms of the new agreement. The new Agreement contains a number of features which represent clear additional value over the terms of the previous 2012 Agreement. The reference basket of countries used to set prices in Ireland has been expanded from 9 to 14 countries and, importantly, includes lower cost countries. For the first time, the Agreement provides for an annual price realignment, which will ensure that the prices of medicines in Ireland reduce in line with price reductions across the reference countries. This will ensure the State achieves better value for money on the cost of medicines as prices in other basket countries are adjusted downwards over time. In addition, the Agreement secured a 30% reduction in the price of biologic medicines when a biosimilar medicine enters the market.
A key focus of this agreement was to achieve lower prices in the face of both demographic pressures on expenditure and the continued development of new medicines, many of which pose affordability challenges to the Irish health service and indeed internationally. The HSE included a savings target of €148m in the National Service Plan 2017 for drug related savings arising from the agreement and the launch of a biosimilar for Embrel in 2016.
