Health Services

Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 1 December 2021

Wednesday, 1 December 2021

Questions (189)

Michael Creed

Question:

189. Deputy Michael Creed asked the Minister for Health further to Parliamentary Question No. 178 of 24 November 2021, if he has raised with HIQA the issue of the challenge facing health service providers including in particular disability services in reopening facilities given the difficulty in complying with HIQA standards particularly around staffing levels; his views on whether there are grounds for reconsidering these on an interim basis given that the alternative is a total denial of service which is causing severe difficulty in many individual service user cases; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [59266/21]

Written answers

Minister for Health

The Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) is an independent authority established to drive high-quality and safe care for health and social care services in Ireland.

HIQA standards in regard to disability service providers focus on the delivery of high quality, safe services.  Regarding staffing levels in designated centres, the regulations require providers to assess the staffing numbers and skill mix required to keep residents safe and to meet their assessed care and support needs.  This is determined by the service providers. 

When inspecting centres, HIQA inspectors confirm that the provider has undertaken the appropriate assessment of care and support needs, has identified the staffing numbers and skill mix required to meet those assessed needs and to keep residents safe, and that providers are ensuring that their actual staffing levels meet those assessed needs.  HIQA inspectors do not determine the numbers and skill mix of staffing in a centre.

The Minister and his officials regularly engage with HIQA in regard to its functions and activities.