Thursday, 13 Mar 2014

Written Answers Nos. 241 - 250

Home Care Packages

Ceisteanna (241)

Gerry Adams

Ceist:

241. Deputy Gerry Adams asked the Minister for Health the number of requests from Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Drogheda for home care packages. [12513/14]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister of State at the Department of Health

As this is a service matter, it has been referred to the Health Service Executive for direct reply.

Home Care Packages

Ceisteanna (242, 243, 244)

Gerry Adams

Ceist:

242. Deputy Gerry Adams asked the Minister for Health the number of requests within the system for home care packages for County Louth. [12514/14]

Gerry Adams

Ceist:

243. Deputy Gerry Adams asked the Minister for Health the average length of time it takes to process requests for home care packages in respect of County Louth. [12515/14]

Gerry Adams

Ceist:

244. Deputy Gerry Adams asked the Minister for Health the number of home care packages in place in County Louth. [12516/14]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister of State at the Department of Health

I propose to take Questions Nos. 242 to 244, inclusive, together.

As these are service matters, they have been referred to the Health Service Executive for direct reply.

Nursing Staff Provision

Ceisteanna (245)

Gerry Adams

Ceist:

245. Deputy Gerry Adams asked the Minister for Health the current ratio of nurses to patients in Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Drogheda by day and by night. [12517/14]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Health

As this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond directly to the Deputy.

Nursing Staff Provision

Ceisteanna (246)

Gerry Adams

Ceist:

246. Deputy Gerry Adams asked the Minister for Health the numbers of graduate nurses lost by Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Drogheda each year since 2011. [12518/14]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Health

As this is a service matter, it has been referred to the Health Service Executive for direct reply.

Hospital Staff

Ceisteanna (247, 252, 269)

Brian Stanley

Ceist:

247. Deputy Brian Stanley asked the Minister for Health the number of the extra 38 posts for the Portlaoise maternity unit approved in July 2013 that have been filled; and when he expects the remainder to be filled [12519/14]

Michael Lowry

Ceist:

252. Deputy Michael Lowry asked the Minister for Health if his attention has been drawn to the fact that the health care system currently has a deficit of over 620 midwives; in view of this information, if he will immediately sanction the recruitment of additional midwives to tackle the shortages in place at present; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12553/14]

Pearse Doherty

Ceist:

269. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Health if his attention has been brought to the recent report by the INMO in relation to midwife staffing levels nationally; his views on this report; the measures he intends to take in view of the report; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12648/14]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Health

I propose to take Questions Nos. 247, 252 and 269 together.

I have forwarded the Deputy's question in relation to the recruitment of the additional staff for the maternity unit in Portlaoise to the HSE for direct reply. However, I would take the opportunity to reaffirm that I and the Government are committed to the provision of safe maternity care at Portlaoise and all other maternity hospitals.

The HSE has the authority to appoint additional frontline staff to ensure the provision of safe care. However, it is clear that staff difficulties alone do not explain the very significant findings in the report completed recently by the Chief Medical Officer, particularly those relating to the interactions with patients, behaviour of staff and the general culture of patient safety. I have directed HIQA to undertake an investigation into the matter and to report to him by the end of the year. It is anticipated that many of the, as yet, unanswered questions will be addressed in the course of the HIQA investigation.

The maternity service at Portlaoise Hospital is now under the control of a transition team with appropriate clinical and managerial expertise. This team will oversee the orderly integration of Portlaoise maternity services into a managed clinical network under a single governance model with the Coombe Women & Infant University Hospital. The report recommends that other similar sized maternity services around the country should be incorporated into a managed clinical network within the relevant hospital group. The report not only sets out the immediate requirements for assuring safety for women attending Portlaoise Hospital Maternity Services, but also provides strategic direction for maternity services in Ireland generally.

This Report will inform and underpin the new National Maternity Service Strategy, which will be completed by the Department of Health this year. The Strategy will provide the strategic direction for the optimal development of our maternity services to ensure that women have access to safe, high quality maternity care in a setting most appropriate to their needs

Midwifery staffing levels are receiving consideration as a priority. The inaugural meeting of the Midwifery Workforce Planning Project took place on Tuesday 7 May, 2014. The aim of this project is to examine the current levels of midwifery staffing and healthcare assistants in the HSE and recommend appropriate staffing levels and or initiatives to improve skill mix. The objectives of the project are to:

- Identify the key changes in maternity services and their likely impact on the requirement for midwives and maternity care assistants, taking into account recent and upcoming developments as a result of service reconfiguration, government policy, industrial relations agreements, clinical research findings, Clinical Care Programme outputs, and changing demography,

- Establish baseline midwifery and maternity care assistant staffing in all maternity units by undertaking a benchmarking exercise. This will include:

- Examining the midwifery workforce planning needs in a defined number of maternity hospitals nationally using Birthrate plus to include 2 large sized units/hospitals, 2 medium sized maternity units and 2 smaller units.

- As a result recommend appropriate midwifery staffing and skill mix levels and/or initiatives to meet emerging models of maternity care ensuring that standards of safety and quality care for women and their families are met in the future.

Care of the Elderly Provision

Ceisteanna (248)

Brian Stanley

Ceist:

248. Deputy Brian Stanley asked the Minister for Health if he will provide an update in the consultations on Shaen and Abbeyleix hospitals; the state of the decision making process; and when he will report to Dáil Éireann on this matter. [12521/14]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister of State at the Department of Health

As this is a service matter, it has been referred to the Health Service Executive for direct reply.

Medical Negligence Cases

Ceisteanna (249)

Brian Stanley

Ceist:

249. Deputy Brian Stanley asked the Minister for Health the amount of cerebral palsy compensation payouts made for children born in Portlaoise hospital from 2010 to 2013. [12523/14]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Health

The management of clinical negligence cases taken against the HSE is delegated to the State Claims Agency which has a statutory mandate to investigate and manage these cases to completion. The information requested by the Deputy concerning the amounts paid in compensation to the families of babies born in the years 2010 to 2013 with cerebral palsy in Portlaoise Hospital is not readily available. Accordingly, I have asked the State Claims Agency to collate the information and it will be forwarded to the Deputy as soon as it is available.

Hospital Services

Ceisteanna (250)

Lucinda Creighton

Ceist:

250. Deputy Lucinda Creighton asked the Minister for Health further to his response to this Deputy at the Oireachtas health committee hearing on 6 March 2014, that he had received a letter in relation to an incident, if he will provide additional details of the incident to which he was referring; if he will confirm the content of the letter; the date on which the letter was sent; the actions he took on receipt of this letter; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12524/14]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Health

In my response to the Deputy at the Oireachtas Committee last week I referred to a letter I had received in relation to one of the cases in Portlaoise. The communication I received was, in fact, an email and it was dated the 18th November, 2012. The information provided in this email was confidential and it would be inappropriate of me to provide details of the case without the consent of the individual who contacted me. I hope the Deputy will understand my desire to maintain this confidentiality.

I first became aware of the other cases in Portlaoise on foot of the Prime Time Investigates programme. I immediately requested the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) of my Department to conduct a review of the safety of Portlaoise Hospital Maternity Services. I published the report of the CMO on the Perinatal Deaths at Midland Regional Hospital, Portlaoise on 28th February, last. The CMO's report is far reaching. It makes 42 recommendations and 11 overall recommendations, all of which I have accepted. It not only sets out the immediate requirements for assuring safety for women attending Portlaoise Hospital Maternity Services but also provides the strategic direction for maternity services in Ireland generally.