Written Answers Nos. 237-254
237. Deputy Brendan Howlin asked the Minister for Health his views on whether it is acceptable that a person (details supplied) on a waiting list to see a consultant neurologist in St. Vincent’s University Hospital, Dublin has been given an appointment for 1 January 2024; if this is in keeping with policy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27762/21]
View answerAs this Parliamentary Question relates to an operational issue, it is a matter for the HSE. However, members of the Oireachtas are advised that the HSE is currently unable to access the information to answer Parliamentary Questions due to the recent cyber-attack, which has required a temporary shut-down of HSE IT systems. The disruption to service is on-going, and the HSE is working hard to restore its IT capacity and resume normal services. Members of the Oireachtas will be advised as soon as the HSE is again in a position to provide responses to PQs and are encouraged to resubmit their Parliamentary Questions at that point.
238. Deputy Brendan Howlin asked the Minister for Health further to Parliamentary Question No. 525 of 5 May 2021, his understanding of the effectiveness of each vaccine authorised for use in Ireland against each identified variant of Covid-19 in tabular form; his understanding of the relative effectiveness of first dose and two doses against each variant; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27763/21]
View answerCovid-19 vaccines can only be approved and used if they comply with all the requirements of quality, safety and efficacy set out in the EU pharmaceutical legislation. Each of the authorised vaccines are indicated for the active immunisation to prevent Covid-19. The vaccine manufacturers are required to ensure that their products remain safe and effective for the authorised indication of prevention of Covid-19.
The European Commission (EC) has granted conditional marketing authorisations (CMA) to four vaccines against COVID-19 on foot of a positive recommendation from the European Medicines Agency (EMA). Following the recommendation for use of vaccines against COVID-19 by the EMA and authorisation for use by the EC, the National Immunisation Advisory Committee (NIAC) develops guidance for their use in Ireland which is contained in the Immunisation Guidelines for Ireland. These guidelines are continuously updated and includes guidance on all new vaccines as they are approved for use in Ireland.
Currently there are limited information from clinical trials with respect to protection against emerging variants. Emerging variants require continuous monitoring of the vaccines’ performance over time. A recent study conducted by Public Health England suggests that vaccine effectiveness is maintained against emerging variants of the disease with available data set out in table below.
Available here: assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/997414/Variants_of_Concern_VOC_Technical_Briefing_16.pdf
|
Vaccine |
Symptomatic Disease |
Hospitalisation |
||
|
Alpha |
Delta |
Alpha |
Delta |
|
|
Pfizer / BioNTech |
||||
|
Dose One |
49% |
33% |
83% |
94% |
|
Dose Two |
93% |
88% |
95% |
96% |
|
AstraZeneca |
||||
|
Dose One |
51% |
33% |
76% |
71% |
|
Dose Two |
66% |
60% |
86% |
92% |
239. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Health if a hospital bed will be provided for a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27764/21]
View answerAs this Parliamentary Question relates to an operational issue, it is a matter for the HSE. However, members of the Oireachtas are advised that the HSE is currently unable to access the information to answer Parliamentary Questions due to the recent cyber-attack, which has required a temporary shut-down of HSE IT systems. The disruption to service is on-going, and the HSE is working hard to restore its IT capacity and resume normal services.
Members of the Oireachtas will be advised as soon as the HSE is again in a position to provide responses to PQs and are encouraged to resubmit their Parliamentary Questions at that point.
240. Deputy Sean Sherlock asked the Minister for Health if there is a policy of data back-up in the operations of his Department and all agencies under his remit; and the regularity with which data is backed-up and secured. [27766/21]
View answerMy Department has well-defined industry standard backup policies and procedures in place to ensure the protection of Departmental data.
For operational and security reasons it would not be appropriate to disclose the schedules for performing backups or to provide further information of our systems and processes which could potentially compromise my Department’s cyber security.
Details for other bodies under the aegis of my Department are operational matters for the bodies concerned and the Deputy should contact the relevant Director/CEO/Registrar directly.
241. Deputy Sean Sherlock asked the Minister for Health the amount paid to consulting organisations (details supplied) by his Department and the HSE since 12 May 2021, in tabular form. [27768/21]
View answerMy Department has made no payments to EY or Deloitte for advice relating to the recent cyber-attack on the HSE and the Department of Health.
242. Deputy John McGuinness asked the Minister for Health the number of versions of a vaccine (details supplied) available; and if all versions are authorised for use in the EU. [27773/21]
View answerIreland supports the EU Procurement Process, the purpose of which is to secure safe and efficacious vaccines for EU citizens.
Covid-19 vaccines can only be approved and used if they comply with all the requirements of quality, safety and efficacy set out in the EU pharmaceutical legislation. No vaccine will be used until Conditional Market authorisation from the European Medicines Agency (EMA) is obtained and any authorised vaccine will be subject to ongoing monitoring in Ireland by the Health Product Regulatory Authority (HPRA).
The delivery of vaccines under APAs that the Commission has negotiated on behalf of Member States are predicated upon a CMA being obtained from the Commission (on the basis of a positive recommendation being awarded by the EMA).
The awarding of a CMA to Vaxzevria provides a high level of assurance that the vaccine has undergone rigorous testing and has met the requirements of the independent regulatory process as regards demonstrating its safety and efficacy. The AstraZeneca vaccine Vaxzevria (previously COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca) COVID-19 Vaccine (ChAdOx1-S [recombinant]) is the sole version of AstraZeneca's vaccine approved for use in the EU.
244. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health if the case of a person (details supplied) will be addressed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27775/21]
View answerAs the Deputy is aware, Irish nurses and midwives are graduate professionals who complete a four-year BSc Nursing degree or a BSc Midwifery degree. The Nursing Midwifery Board of Ireland (NMBI) is the independent regulatory body for nursing and midwifery. As a core function the NMBI engages with 13 Higher Education Institutes (HEIs) and continues to monitor educational programmes and clinical placement locations. The education and training of nurses and midwives is a robust process. The degree programmes are provided by the HEIs, and the content is evaluated by the NMBI to ensure all courses comply with EU Directive 2005/36/EC (Recognition of Professional Qualifications in Practice) and the relevant national standards.
As Minister, I am acutely aware of the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic for student nurse and midwives, and indeed for the entire health workforce.
There is no doubt that the provision of education programmes for healthcare students during a pandemic is challenging. Recognising these challenges, I secured additional supports and protections for student nurses and midwives which included access to the Pandemic Unemployment Payment and additional occupational health supports equal to those of employees, while on clinical placement. Furthermore, a Clinical Placement Oversight Group has been monitoring student clinical placements during the pandemic. In order to ensure the safe and effective fulfilment of required clinical and practice placements, this Group, informed by real-time information and data from all hospital groups and HEIs, provided regular updates to me.
Undergraduate nursing students who do not achieve competence in the clinical environment while on placement are provided with further opportunities to meet the relevant requirements through a period of additional practice placement/repeat placement in line with local HEI policy. Students are afforded three opportunities to successfully complete a clinical placement. However, students are not permitted to progress to the next stage of their programme or year without successful completion of the required clinical placement modules for the current stage or year. Each HEI has designated appeals processes and procedures, with identified exit pathways for student nurses who do not successfully complete the required clinical placement modules for the current stage or year.
As the Deputy is aware, I cannot comment on an individual case. However, I note that regarding the case he has highlighted, the appeals procedures is still active.
245. Deputy Denis Naughten asked the Minister for Health if behavioural optometry assessments are available publicly for children with special educational needs; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27776/21]
View answerAs this Parliamentary Question relates to an operational issue, it is a matter for the HSE. However, members of the Oireachtas are advised that the HSE is currently unable to access the information to answer Parliamentary Questions due to the recent cyber-attack, which has required a temporary shut-down of HSE IT systems. The disruption to service is on-going, and the HSE is working hard to restore its IT capacity and resume normal services. Members of the Oireachtas will be advised as soon as the HSE is again in a position to provide responses to PQs and are encouraged to resubmit their Parliamentary Questions at that point.
246. Deputy Alan Dillon asked the Minister for Health the timeline for the publication of the disability capacity review; if the data from the report can be made available to allow stakeholder organisations form evidence-based policy proposals; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27777/21]
View answer260. Deputy Neasa Hourigan asked the Minister for Health when the disability capacity review will be published; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28041/21]
View answer286. Deputy Johnny Mythen asked the Minister for Health when his Department will publish its disability capacity review report; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28204/21]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 246, 260 and 286 together.
The Review of Disability Social Care Demand and Capacity Requirements to 2032 has been completed, and publication is expected in the near future. The provision of alternative formats which are accessible to people with different forms of disability is being prepared; as well as a Framework Action plan to progress implementation, in line with the Programme for Government commitments.
As we progress towards the vision outlined by Sláintecare, it is essential that over the next number of years, the State moves to a population-based planning approach, based on demographic and geographic considerations, that reflects both the health and social care needs of those within our population, including those who require specialist disability services.
I therefore hope to be in a position to publish the Disability Capacity Review Report in the very near future, as this will inform the planning for the specialist disability services to meet evolving needs.
247. Deputy Louise O'Reilly asked the Minister for Health the initiatives being undertaken in his Department in relation to addressing food poverty; the research or scoping exercises being undertaken; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27801/21]
View answerFood poverty is a cross-governmental area involving a number of Government departments.
The Programme for Government “Our Shared Future”, in the chapter “A New Social Contract” contains a commitment to “Work across government to address food poverty in children and ensure no child goes hungry”. There are also actions relating to food poverty under First 5: A Whole-of-Government Strategy for Babies, Young Children and their Families, the Roadmap for Social Inclusion 2020-2025, and the Obesity Policy and Action Plan 2016-2025.
There are a number of initiatives underway in relation to this area. In relation to the commitment in the Programme for Government, a Food Poverty Working Group has been established by the Department of Social Protection, and this Working Group has the key relevant Government Departments sitting on it, including the Department of Health. From a nutrition policy actions perspective, and to assist with the Department’s contribution to the Working Group, a Healthy Eating Food Poverty Working Group under the Healthy Eating Sub Group of the Obesity Policy Implementation Oversight Group has been established.
The School Meals Scheme operated by the Department of Social Protection, working with nutrition standards developed under the aegis of the Department of Health, maintained during the summer of 2020 and during the more recent school closures due to the pandemic. Healthy Ireland is also working on Nutrition Guidelines for Food Parcels with safefood and the HSE.
A Food in Schools Forum has also been established to provide strategic leadership and guidance on food in schools initiatives, and to help ensure that food provided is representative of the Healthy Eating Guidelines and makes a significant contribution to childhood nutrition. A pilot meals programme in Early Learning and Care settings is due to take place in 2021, and Healthy Ireland is leading on developing nutrition standards for this.
More broadly, the Healthy Ireland Strategic Action Plan 2021-2025, launched in May 2021, features an additional theme on “Reducing Health Inequalities”, and this will be a major focus of Healthy Ireland and Sláintecare. The goal of the Sláintecare Healthy Communities Programme will be to improve the long-term health and wellbeing of the most disadvantaged communities in Ireland, with health-specific interventions targeting smoking, social prescribing, parenting, healthy eating (e.g. expansion of the Healthy Food Made Easy programme), and Making Every Contact Count.
In terms of research, in the Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children (HBSC) report published in January 2020 and based on 2018 data, the main study reported a drop of 3% in those reporting ever going to school or bed hungry, at 19% compared to 22% in the previous study based on 2014 data. In the HBSC middle childhood survey, in 2018 28% of 3rd and 4th class children reported ever going to school or bed hungry because there was not enough food at home, compared with 29% in 2014.
248. Deputy Alan Kelly asked the Minister for Health if the National Integrated Medical Imaging System is one of the HSE systems that has been recently hacked in the ransomware attack. [28001/21]
View answer249. Deputy Alan Kelly asked the Minister for Health the impact of the recent hack on the National Integrated Medical Imaging System radiology information system, services and patients; and the patient data that is held in this system. [28002/21]
View answer250. Deputy Alan Kelly asked the Minister for Health if a build project (details supplied) commenced and finished; and if so, if the details of same will be furnished. [28003/21]
View answer251. Deputy Alan Kelly asked the Minister for Health the details the 22 systems (details supplied) and the work that was required to be done; if this work was undertaken; and if any of these systems were compromised in the recent hack attack. [28004/21]
View answer252. Deputy Alan Kelly asked the Minister for Health if the National Integrated Medical Imaging System radiology information system was hacked in the recent attack; the stage the NIMIS2.0 project upgrade is at; and if the NIMIS 2.0 project upgrade go live, build or commencement date was pushed out due to Covid-19 (details supplied). [28005/21]
View answer253. Deputy Alan Kelly asked the Minister for Health if the java upgrade (details supplied) on the National Integrated Medical Imaging System client process was completed;if so, when; the way in which it was completed; and the cost to the Exchequer. [28006/21]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 248 to 253, inclusive, together.
The majority of health systems were affected in some way or other by the recent ransomware attack. If the core system itself was not affected, PCs and clients that were connected to these systems were often compromised in some way. The National Integrated Medical Imaging Health System was scheduled to get a significant upgrade in 2020 so that the PCs that support it could be migrated to the latest Windows operating system. It was simply not possible to implement that programme of work in the middle of the pandemic. Whilst that did result in a scenario whereby many PCs connected NIMIS were running older operating systems, the recent ransomware attack was much more sophisticated than a straightforward attack on an old version of a Microsoft operating system. The Health Service Executive (HSE) advised the Joint Committee on Health on June 23rd 2021 that they plan to push ahead with the NIMIS upgrade after the current cyber recovery phase is complete.
The HSE has reported that operational capacity will remain restricted until full connectivity is restored.
As these Parliamentary Questions relate to operational issues, it is a matter for the HSE. However, members of the Oireachtas are advised that the HSE is currently unable to access the information to answer Parliamentary Questions due to the recent cyber-attack, which has required a temporary shut-down of HSE IT systems. The disruption to service is on-going, and the HSE is working hard to restore its IT capacity and resume normal services. Members of the Oireachtas will be advised as soon as the HSE is again in a position to provide responses to PQs and are encouraged to resubmit their Parliamentary Questions at that point.
254. Deputy Alan Kelly asked the Minister for Health if roles (details supplied) have commenced or are still vacant. [28007/21]
View answerAs this Parliamentary Question relates to an operational issue, it is a matter for the HSE. However, members of the Oireachtas are advised that the HSE is currently unable to access the information to answer Parliamentary Questions due to the recent cyber-attack, which has required a temporary shut-down of HSE IT systems. The disruption to service is on-going, and the HSE is working hard to restore its IT capacity and resume normal services. Members of the Oireachtas will be advised as soon as the HSE is again in a position to provide responses to PQs and are encouraged to resubmit their Parliamentary Questions at that point.
