Written Answers Nos. 895-913
895. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health if immediate action will be taken to recruit an additional 16 neurology nurse specialists in Cork University Hospital (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52344/21]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly, as soon as possible.
896. Deputy Cian O'Callaghan asked the Minister for Health when he will give special recognition to the work of frontline healthcare workers over the course of the pandemic; when measures in relation to same will be implemented; the form this recognition will take; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52345/21]
View answerGovernment have indicated their intention to recognise front-line health sector workers in respect of the extraordinary contribution and commitment they have made in respect of the management of the pandemic.
The most appropriate means and timeline for such recognition is being considered noting that the pandemic is still ongoing.
897. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Minister for Health the number of adverse events reported to and-or dealt with by the State Claims Agency since 1 January 2019 related to the Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Act 2018; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52362/21]
View answerThe Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Act 2018 was signed into law on 20 December 2018 and commenced on 1 January 2019.
The Act permits termination to be carried out in cases where there is a risk to the life, or of serious harm to the health, of the pregnant woman; where there is a condition present which is likely to lead to the death of the foetus either before or within 28 days of birth; and without restriction up to 12 weeks of pregnancy.
Expanded services for termination of pregnancy commenced on 1 January 2019 and are provided through participating General Practitioners and hospitals throughout the country.
Section 20 of the Act provides for a notification system in relation to all terminations of pregnancy carried out under the legislation, and requires the Minister to publish an annual report on the notifications received in a given year. Two such Annual Reports have been published to date. The Annual Report 2019 indicated that a total of 6,666 notifications of terminations of pregnancy were received that year, while the Annual Report 2020 showed that in total 6577 medical procedures were carried out under the Act in 2020.
The State Claims Agency hosts the National Incident Management System (NIMS) which is the principal source of national data on incident activity for the Irish public health service. Under the National Treasury Management Agency (Amendment) Act 2000 State authorities are obliged to report adverse incidents promptly to the State Claims Agency (SCA). This allows the SCA, in conjunction with State authorities, to identify and analyse developing trends and patterns and to work with the State authorities concerned to develop and implement risk mitigation strategies. It is also important in the investigation of any subsequent claim.
I have been informed by the SCA that 94 incidents have been reported to the Agency via NIMS between 01/01/2019 to 26/10/2021 which relate to the Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Act 2018. These incidents were identified via a search of relevant fields in NIMS which was supported by a manual review for patients or service users of the Termination of Pregnancy services. Details of this process are below.
Criteria used
- Incidents reported since 01/01/2019 across all healthcare locations on NIMS.
- Who was involved = Patient/ Service User
- Sub Hazard Type is “Birth Specific Procedures”, “Clinical Procedures” or “Medication”
- Incidents have been identified by searching in the free text fields “Summary of the Incident”, “Type of Injury (Other)” or “Sub hazard type (text)” for the words “TOP” (termination of pregnancy), “STOP” (surgical termination of pregnancy), “MTOP” (medical termination of pregnancy), “Termination”, “Medical termination”, “Abortion”
- A manual review was carried out on the resulting list of incidents by the SCA Clinical Risk Unit to determine relevance to the query.
- This report is correct as of 26/10/2021
898. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for Health the status of the medical cannabis access programme; and if a product (details supplied) is being made available to persons who require it by prescription. [52367/21]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly as soon as possible.
899. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Health further to paragraph 4.1 on page 29 of the First Substantive Interim Report of the Farrelly Commission of Investigation (Certain matters relative to a disability service in the South East and related matters), when all eight of the earlier interim reports will be made available (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52368/21]
View answerThe Farrelly Commission, which commenced work on 15th May 2017, was established to investigate the care and protection of “Grace” (pseudonym) and others in a former foster home in the South East, which has been the subject of abuse allegations. The Farrelly Commission is a statutory Commission of Investigation and is independent in undertaking its functions under the legislation and its Terms of Reference.
Since its establishment, the Farrelly Commission has submitted a series of interim reports to the Minister for Health, six of which have been published on the Department’s website, and two Substantive Interim Reports have also been published. I hope to proceed with publishing the remaining interim reports in the near future.
900. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health when Covid-19 booster vaccines will be available for those with autoimmune conditions in particular type 1 diabetes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52370/21]
View answerOn 8 September, I announced an update to the Covid-19 vaccination programme following advice from the National Immunisation Advisory Committee (NIAC).
The NIAC has recommended a booster dose of an mRNA vaccine (irrespective of whether the primary vaccination course was of an mRNA or adenoviral vector) for residents aged 65 years and older living in Long Term Residential Care Facilities and for those aged 80 years and older living in the community. The booster dose can be given after a minimum interval of six months following completion of the primary vaccination schedule. I have accepted this advice and the HSE has made the necessary arrangements to operationalise these recommendations with the booster rollout now underway.
The NIAC has now recommended that a booster dose of Pfizer/BioNTech should be offered to all those aged 60-79 who have completed their primary vaccination course with any Covid-19 vaccination. The booster dose should be ideally given 6 months following completion of the primary vaccination schedule (with a minimum interval of 5 months).
The NIAC continues to examine emerging evidence regarding booster vaccines for those with waning immunity and reduced effectiveness in other groups, such as those with co-morbidities (under 60 years of age) and healthcare workers and will make further recommendations if required.
901. Deputy Neasa Hourigan asked the Minister for Health if he will identify all grades of HSE staff based in a location (details supplied) who received Covid-19 vaccinations in January 2021 ahead of acute and long-stay patients and nursing staff in St. Stephen's Psychiatric Hospital, Glanmire; the time lag between the commencement of vaccinations for staff at the location and the later commencement of vaccinations for patients and nursing staff in St. Stephen's Hospital; the level of HSE management that decided on these staff cohorts receiving vaccines ahead of patients and nursing staff from St. Stephen's Hospital; if primarily office-based staff from other bases within HSE south were scheduled for vaccinations ahead of patients and nursing staff from St. Stephen's Hospital; if so, the grades of staff prioritised; the way HSE management responded to representations made on behalf of St. Stephen's Hospital patients and nursing staff during a period of uncertainty in January 2021 regarding the vaccination schedule for these latter groups; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52373/21]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly.
902. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Minister for Health when a person (details supplied) can expect an appointment. [52374/21]
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.
In relation to the particular query raised, as this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly, as soon as possible.
903. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health the action that is being taken in order to provide respite care to persons with a disability in County Cork, in particular a person (details supplied); if there are plans to open up respite care services which were previously available; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52379/21]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
904. Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Health further to Parliamentary Question No. 3254 of 27 July 2021, if he will request an urgent update from the HSE in relation to same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52385/21]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly, as soon as possible.
907. Deputy Maurice Quinlivan asked the Minister for Health the reason a child (details supplied) has been waiting on an ASD assessment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52393/21]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly, as soon as possible.
908. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Health the number of dentists participating in the dental treatment services scheme by county or smallest available geographic unit; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52400/21]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
909. Deputy Michael McNamara asked the Minister for Health if an appointment will be expedited for a child (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52401/21]
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.
In relation to the particular query raised, as this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly, as soon as possible.
910. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Health when he will publish the human tissue Bill; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52403/21]
View answerThe enactment of the Human Tissue (Transplantation, Post-Mortem, Anatomical Examination and Public Display) Bill is a priority for the Government. Work on the drafting of the Bill in collaboration with the Office of Parliamentary Council is progressing with a view to ensuring that Government approval is secured to publish the Bill before the end of 2021.
911. Deputy Rose Conway-Walsh asked the Minister for Health the average waiting times for both inpatient and outpatient appointments at Mayo University Hospital; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52415/21]
View answerIt is recognised that waiting times for scheduled appointments and procedures have been impacted in the last nineteen months as a direct result of the COVID-19 pandemic and more recently as a result of the ransomware attack. While significant progress was made in reducing waiting times from June 2020 onwards, the surge in Covid-19 cases in the first quarter of 2021 and the associated curtailment of acute hospital services, coupled with the ransomware attack of May 2021, has impacted waiting times.
My Department, the HSE and the National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF) are focusing on improving access to elective care in order to reduce waiting times for patients. These plans include increased use of private hospitals, funding weekend and evening work in public hospitals, funding “see and treat” services where minor procedures are provided at the same time as outpatient consultations, providing virtual clinics and increasing capacity in the public hospital system.
On the 7th October I published the Acute Waiting List Action Plan. This plan, to run until December 2021, has a series of targeted measures that are designed to address the growth in waiting lists caused by Covid-19 and the cyber-attack.
In addition, my Department, the HSE and the NTPF are also working on a Multi Annual Waiting List Plan to bring waiting lists in line with Sláintecare targets over the coming years. This process will be overseen by a Ministerial Taskforce, chaired by the Secretary General of my Department and includes representatives from the HSE and National Treatment Purchase Fund. The plan will be informed by the lessons learned from the successful Vaccine Taskforce.
For 2022 an additional allocation of €250 million, comprised of €200 million to the HSE and €50 million to the National Treatment Purchase Fund has been provided in respect of work to reduce hospital and community waiting lists. The €250 million will be used to fund additional activity in both the public and private sectors. The €50 million additional funding provided to the NTPF brings its total allocation for 2022 to €150 million, and as a consequence there will be a budget of €350 million available to support vital initiatives to improve access to acute hospitals and community health services.
The NTPF has advised that the health system does not collect the data necessary to calculate average wait times. In particular, the time to treatment of patients who have already received their care is not collected. The NTPF collects data on patients currently on the waiting list and the average time that these patients have been waiting is provided here.
The information requested by the Deputy regarding the average wait times for both inpatient and outpatient appointments at Mayo University Hospital is outlined.
|
Report |
Archive Date |
Hospital Name |
Mean Average Wait in Days |
|
Mean Average IPDC wait Mayo |
30/09/2021 |
Mayo University Hospital |
403 |
|
report |
Archive Date |
Hospital Name |
Median Wait in Days |
|
Median Average IPDC wait Mayo |
30/09/2021 |
Mayo University Hospital |
309 |
|
report |
Archive Date |
Hospital Name |
Mean Average Wait in Days |
|
Mean Average OP wait Mayo |
30/09/2021 |
Mayo University Hospital |
476 |
|
report |
Archive Date |
Hospital Name |
Median Wait in Days |
|
Median Average OP wait Mayo |
30/09/2021 |
Mayo University Hospital |
316 |
The health system does not collect the data necessary to calculate average wait times. In particular, the time to treatment of patients who have already received their care is not collected. The NTPF collects data on patients currently on the waiting list and the average time that these patients have been waiting is provided.
912. Deputy Mairéad Farrell asked the Minister for Health the number of children under 18 years of age awaiting a first-time appointment since being switched to the new children's disability network team for CHO2 based in Renmore, County Galway, by age, intervention type, speech and language therapy, occupational therapy and physiotherapy, in tabular form. [52418/21]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly, as soon as possible.
913. Deputy Pat Buckley asked the Minister for Health further to Parliamentary Question No. 93 of 19 October 2021, if the HSE has applied for funding from the €15 million major capital works funding or the €13 million minor capital works funding to protect the mental health services in the Owenacurra Centre, Midleton, County Cork; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52443/21]
View answerAs the Health Service Executive is responsible for the delivery of public healthcare infrastructure projects, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly in relation to this matter.
