Written Answers Nos. 770-791
771. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health to report on the development of supports for healthcare workers who have developed long-Covid or similar conditions or syndromes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10735/24]
View answerIn the public health sector, a temporary Special Scheme has been in place since July 2022 to provide special leave with pay for eligible staff in respect of Long Covid. This Special Scheme has been extended a number of times, however it will conclude as planned on 31st March 2024 and no further extensions will be granted.
Any employee of the public health sector remaining unwell after that date, may utilise the full provisions of the Public Service Sick Leave Scheme which will provide further support.
The sick leave scheme provides full pay for three months, followed by half pay for three months, and after that, Temporary Rehabilitative Remuneration may be applied for, which, if granted, provides up to a further 547 days of paid leave. The Critical Illness Protocol that forms part of the sick leave scheme may also provide additional supports if granted.
These available supports have been confirmed in a letter that issued from the Department to the HSE, for onward distribution to impacted employees ahead of the close out of the Special Scheme on the 31st March.
These supports of the sick leave scheme are available to all public health sector employees who are unwell and need to remain absent from the workplace with other illnesses also.
There are a cohort of employees who developed Long Covid, and who did not meet the criteria for the Special Scheme. This cohort were supported by DPENDPR’s Special Leave with Pay initially (for up to 28 months depending on date of testing positive for Covid-19), and have since been able to avail of the full suite of supports available via the sick leave scheme. They are not impacted by the conclusion of the Special Scheme.
772. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health to report on the development of the model of care for long-Covid and similar conditions or syndromes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10736/24]
View answerAs the matter raised is a service delivery matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly as soon as possible.
773. Deputy Denis Naughten asked the Minister for Health when he will address the anomaly regarding the nursing home support scheme farm exemption which presently excludes the nearest living relative if the relationship is beyond a nephew; the reason for the delay in addressing this anomaly; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10758/24]
View answerFair Deal was designed to protect and support vulnerable older people, to ensure equal access to nursing home care based on what they could afford. This gives certainty to people and families. Fair Deal is in place to support vulnerable older people at a time in their lives where full-time care is essential.
The Department of Health introduced the Nursing Homes Support Scheme (Amendment) Act 2021, which became operational in October 2021. As you are no doubt aware, this introduced a three-year cap on contributions from family farm and business assets, provided that a family successor is appointed to run the asset for at least 6 years and other conditions are met. The Act also extended the three-year cap to the proceeds of sale of a principal residence, which means that, from the fourth year in care onwards and provided the house was sold while the person is in care, a nursing home resident may sell their principal private residence without incurring additional costs.
Prior to the amendment becoming fully operational, it was recognised that the preceding iteration of the legislation did not place caps on the financial assessment of family owned and operated farms or businesses when calculating the means to pay for nursing home care. This placed a potentially onerous burden on family successors and could challenge the future viability of these productive assets.
Therefore, the Department of Health proposed a policy change to the Scheme, to cap contributions based on farm and business assets at three years where a family successor commits to working the productive asset. The stated policy objective of the legislation is to introduce additional safeguards in the Scheme to further protect the viability and sustainability of family farms and businesses that will be passed down to the next generation of the family to continue to work them as productive assets to provide for their livelihood.
Family Successor
The Department of Health is in the process of amending the Nursing Homes Support Scheme to broaden the definition who could act as the family successor. This would expand those eligible to act as family successor to cousins, great-nephews and great-nieces, and great-grandchildren of either the resident or their partner.
It is envisaged that this will retain the policy intention for family farms and businesses, whilst providing enough flexibility in the case that people will be in a situation where they would have no eligible family successor. It is worth noting that any family successor will also need to commit to follow the obligations as outlined under the Nursing Homes Support Scheme (Amendment) Act 2021.
You will appreciate that work within the Department is at an early stage. Drafting legislation can often be a complex and lengthy process, and we must ensure that this legislation, when enacted, not only fulfils the goals of this policy but is also entirely consistent with all other existing legislation, thus the Department is working with the Office of Parliamentary Counsel on the drafting of the Bill. It is expected that the Bill will be published soon.
I will be in contact with all representative farming and small business associations and other relevant stakeholders in respect of these legislative changes when it is feasible to do so.
774. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Health the current number of persons experiencing delayed discharge from hospital, by hospital, in tabular form. [10760/24]
View answer775. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Health the total number of delayed discharges in 2023, by month, in tabular form. [10761/24]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 774 and 775 together.
As these are operational matters, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
As the Deputy may be aware, management and administrative grade staff in the Fórsa union in the HSE recently ended the industrial action which commenced on 6 October 2023. As a consequence, members in these grades were not engaging with political forums or processes. As a result of the accumulated backlog, the question asked by the Deputy may be delayed in receiving a response directly from the HSE.
776. Deputy Steven Matthews asked the Minister for Health if his attention has been drawn to the withdrawal of HSE funding for the Understanding and Managing Adult ADHD Programme (UMAAP) currently delivered by an organisation (details supplied); if he is concerned of the impact this will have for those that rely on this service; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10768/24]
View answerADHD has long been recognised as one of the most common psychiatric disorders in children and it is now known to persist into adulthood. Core symptoms include inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity.
It can cause many issues in areas such as personal and social relations, education and occupation, managing money and organising life in general, there is also an increased risk of having other mental health difficulties with it such as anxiety and depression.
Children can access ADHD assessments through the National Educational Psychological Service. In addition to this, as per the CAMHS Operational Guidelines, CAMHS take referrals for children and adolescents up to age 18 with moderate to severe ADHD.
I am aware that prior to the inception of the National Clinical Programme for Adults with ADHD which I launched in 2021, there were no specific ADHD public services available for Adults in Ireland.
The NCP for ADHD is delivered as part of the HSE’s mental health service provision to ensure an integrated, person-centred response to adults with ADHD. The programme includes both assessment and treatment of the disorder and works collaboratively with voluntary agencies. It envisages a national service of ADHD teams, with each Team comprised of Consultant Psychiatrist, Senior Psychologist, Senior Occupational Therapist, Clinical Nurse Specialist Mental Health, and an administrator.
Enhancement of specialist mental health services such as ADHD is a key priority for myself as a Minister, the Government as a whole and the HSE. Since 2021, over €3 million has been made available for funding ADHD posts from Programme for Government funding. This has enabled the set-up of 5 ADHD Teams with recruitment of over 25 posts, and two more teams are currently in development with posts funded for them.
In addition, as part of the National Clinical Programme adults funding of €150,000 was allocated to facilitate a collaboration with ADHD Ireland and the UCD School of Psychology to develop an ADHD app and the UMAAP Programme (Understanding and Managing Adult ADHD Programme). Both the ADHD App and the UMAAP Programme have proven to be two very positive resources for people with ADHD.
The UMAAP Programme is delivered as a 5-week workshop, and its aim is to provide education and tools for adults on how to manage ADHD.
I am pleased to confirm that further to recent discussions between the Department of Health and the HSE to finalise 2024 mental health funding, ADHD Ireland will be provided with funding for provision of the UMAAP Programme in 2024 and beyond. I look forward to launching the UMAAP Programme in April as agreed with ADHD Ireland.
777. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health to outline in tabular form the number of GMS panels that are currently vacant without a GP; the location of each panel; the length of time it is vacant; the number of patients on each panel; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10769/24]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
As the Deputy may be aware, management and administrative grade staff in the Fórsa union in the HSE commenced industrial action on Friday, 6 October. As a consequence of this industrial action, members in these grades are not engaging with political forums or processes. As a result, the question asked by the Deputy may be delayed in receiving a response directly from the HSE.
778. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health how much of the €5 million investment from Budget 2023 to target backlogs in dental services for children and adult medical card holders has been spent in the way that it was intended; if the remainder of this money is still ringfenced to target dental waiting lists; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10776/24]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly.
779. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health the number of dentists contracted to the DTSS for the years 2012 to date inclusive, in tabular form. [10777/24]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly.
780. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health the spend on the DTSS for the years 2012 to date inclusive, in tabular form. [10778/24]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly.
781. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health the budget allocated for the DTSS for each year from 2012 to date inclusive, in tabular form. [10779/24]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly.
782. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health the number of medical card patients seen by dentists on the DTSS for each year from 2012 to date inclusive, in tabular form. [10780/24]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly.
783. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health the number of dentists contracted to the DTSS per CHO area, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10781/24]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly.
785. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health the number of WTE dentists contracted to the school dental screening service for the years 2012 to date inclusive, in tabular form. [10783/24]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly.
786. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health the allocated budget to the school dental screening service for the years 2012 to date inclusive, in tabular form. [10784/24]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly.
787. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health the spend on the school dental screening service for the years 2012 to date inclusive in tabular form. [10785/24]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly.
788. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health the number of children seen by dentists on the school dental screening service for the years 2012 to date inclusive in tabular form. [10786/24]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly.
789. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health the number of dentists WTEs contracted to the school screening service per CHO area, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10787/24]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly.
790. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health his plans to increase the number of dentists or WTEs contracted to the public dental service; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10788/24]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly.
791. Deputy Martin Kenny asked the Minister for Health when the recruitment embargo for the HSE will be lifted so that the community neurorehabilitation team for HSE area CHO1 can be brought up to the required 13 WTE; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10792/24]
View answerThe Recruitment Pause is still in place except for Disability services, Consultants and Graduate Nurses and Doctors. The reality is that the HSE exceeded its 2023 funded workforce targets, which is neither affordable or sustainable.
As of the end of December 2023, there were 145,985 staff working in our health service. This was an increase of 8,239 since the start of January 2023. The HSE was funded to hire an additional 6,010 staff – meaning it was over by almost 2,200.
It was essential that controls were put in place in the latter part of 2023 in order to protect the HSE’s ability to continue to recruit essential roles in 2024. Funding for an additional 2,268 staff has been secured by the Minister for Health for 2024. Plans for the immediate recruitment of these staff are currently being put in place by the HSE.
