Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 27 July 2021
3321. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Health his plans to introduce a national registry of heart valve disease to include data from public and private hospitals; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41344/21]
View answerThe management of heart valve disease is a specialists cardiac service. The National Review of Specialist Cardiac Services is a key enabler for future policy and its recommendations will inform the future provision of services.
The National Review of Specialist Cardiac Services commenced in January 2018 with Professor Phillip Nolan as Chair of the Steering Group. This Review aims to achieve optimal patient outcomes at population level with particular emphasis on the safety, quality and sustainability of the services that patients receive by establishing the need for an optimal configuration of a national adult cardiac service. This aligns with the Sláintecare reform programme.
While substantial progress has been made on the Review, the COVID-19 Pandemic has impacted on the progress of the review, as the Chair has played a key role in the national COVID-19 response, both as a member of the NPHET and Chair of the Irish Epidemiological Modelling Advisory Group. Work is now underway to progress the Review to completion over the coming months.
As part of the response to this Parliamentary Question relates to service delivery 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.
