Hospital Staff.

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 30 March 2004

Tuesday, 30 March 2004

Ceisteanna (253, 254)

Martin Ferris

Ceist:

367 Mr. Ferris asked the Minister for Health and Children if he will approve the appointment of a paediatric immunologist who would be able to diagnose and treat the 80 or more forms of paediatric immunological disease that currently threaten the lives of Ireland’s children, replacing the current system where children in Ireland have to wait for ten months to a year to see an immunologist from England which only comes to Ireland seven to eight times per year. [9720/04]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Health and Children (Mr. Martin)

In November 2000, Comhairle na nOspidéal published a report on immunology services which recommended that there should be four supraregional immunology centres in the country. A total of two centres were recommended for Leinster/Ulster — one centre based in north Dublin and one based in south Dublin. Supraregional immunology centres for Munster and Connacht/Donegal were recommended to be based in Cork and Galway respectively.

The report recommended that one of the consultant immunologists at the south Dublin centre should have a special interest in paediatric immunology and have substantial clinical commitments at the children's hospitals at Crumlin and Tallaght.

The appointment of a consultant immunologist with a special interest in paediatric immunology is a matter for the Eastern Regional Health Authority which is charged with responsibility for commissioning health and personal social services on behalf of the population of the region, and also on behalf of those outside the region who are referred for specialist treatment. My Department has, therefore, asked the regional chief executive of the authority to examine the issue and to reply to the Deputy directly.

Jerry Cowley

Ceist:

368 Dr. Cowley asked the Minister for Health and Children if his attention has been drawn to the unfair treatment of public health nurses or professionals at local and national level, due to the failure of the Health Services Employers Agency to recognise them as clinical nurse specialists as recognised by the commission for nursing 1998; his views on whether such recognition as clinical nurse specialists is deserved, in view of the fact that it is essential that public health nurses have three qualifications (details supplied) and that other disciplines with fewer qualifications are designated clinical nurse specialists; his further views on whether this is unfair and an anomaly; that it is demoralising that public health nurses are denied their legal and professional right; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9733/04]

Minister for Health and Children (Mr. Martin)

I presume the Deputy is referring to the pay awards recommended under the Public Service Benchmarking Body, PSBB, which saw the public health nurse, PHN, grade awarded an increase of 9.2% and the clinical nurse manager 2/clinical nurse specialist grade awarded 12.2%. The PSBB carried out an assessment of the PHN grade at the behest of the Irish Nurses Organisation prior to making its recommendation. The benchmarking process established "new absolute levels of pay" for nursing and other public service grades and furthermore stated that "no benchmarked grade may receive a further increase as a consequence of the body's recommendations as they effect any other grade, whether benchmarked or not". I would point out that in recognition of their qualifications, all PHNs are paid a qualification allowance of €2,422 per annum and PHNs who were in employment on 16 November 1999 are paid a further red circled allowance of €1,390 per annum on top of their basic salary.