Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 29 November 2012
259. Deputy Peter Mathews asked the Minister for Health if he will ensure that a effective patient transport is provided in respect of a person (details supplied) in Dublin 16; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53623/12]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe cost to the health service of providing non-emergency patient transport, in particular for patients going to outpatient (OPD) appointments, has escalated in recent years. As the HSE has no statutory obligation to provide patient transport, other than emergency transport, non-essential transport provision has been identified for budgetary control. Accordingly, criteria have been revised considerably and a uniform approach to providing such transport is being rolled out across the health regions.
In general, patients are expected to make their own way to and from hospital and OPD appointments, using private or scheduled public transport. The exceptions are for patients whose appointments are directly related to dialysis, radiotherapy and chemotherapy or post-operative transplant treatment. Transport may also be provided where, in the clinician's view, the patient would be unable to make the journey without clinical assistance or where the patient must be transported on a stretcher.
Where transport has been withdrawn, having previously been provided, this may be as a result of the Local Health Office (LHO) beginning to implement the national criteria. If a patient feels there is a genuine case for provision, then they should approach the LHO and their clinician should make a clinical case for it.
Under the supplementary welfare allowance scheme, the Department of Social Protection may make a single payment to help meet exceptional expenditure which a person could not reasonably be expected to meet out of their weekly income. These payments are known as Exceptional Needs Payments (ENPs). The amount paid, if any, is assessed by that department on a case by case basis. ere is no automatic entitlement to such payments and the fact that a person is dependent on a social welfare or HSE payment does not necessarily mean that they will qualify for an ENP.
As this question relates to a query about an individual and is, therefore, an operational mater for the HSE, it has been forwarded to the HSE for direct reply to the Deputy
