Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 10 November 2021
212. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Minister for Health if he will request the State Claims Agency to provide details on the 94 incidents reported to same via the National Incident Management System between 1 January 2019 to 26 October 2021 which relate to the Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Act 2018; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54897/21]
View answer245. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Minister for Health further to Parliamentary Question No. 897 of 2 November 2021, the breakdown of the 94 incidents reported to the State Claims Agency via the National Incident Management System related to the Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Act 2018 by severity rating categorisation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [55003/21]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 212 and 245 together.
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.
The State Claims Agency has informed that when incidents are reported to the National Incident Management System (NIMS) they are categorised by the reporting hospital according to the severity of the injury, ranging from negligible to extreme incidents. Over half of the incidents reported were reported as negligible or minor in severity, e.g., incidents related to documentation and communication. The remainder of the incidents were reported as moderate in severity, e.g., post-procedure complications.
