Written Answers Nos. 368-390
368. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Health if it is Health Service Executive policy to prevent staff from returning from part-time hours to full-time hours; if it is appropriate that staff members be advised that if they were to reduce their hours to facilitate the care of a sick relative, that hours would not be restored on completion of that care; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40074/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraI have asked the HSE to respond to the Deputy directly on this matter. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and they will follow up the matter with them.
369. Deputy Jack Wall asked the Minister for Health the date for a procedure for a person (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40079/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraUnder the Health Act 2004, the Health Service Executive (HSE) is required to manage and deliver, or arrange to be delivered on its behalf, health and personal social services. Section 6 of the HSE Governance Act 2013 bars the Minister for Health from directing the HSE to provide a treatment or a personal service to any individual or to confer eligibility on any individual.
The National Waiting List Management Policy, A standardised approach to managing scheduled care treatment for in-patient, day case and planned procedures, January 2014, has been developed to ensure that all administrative, managerial and clinical staff follow an agreed national minimum standard for the management and administration of waiting lists for scheduled care. This policy, which has been adopted by the Health Service Executive, sets out the processes that hospitals are to implement to manage waiting lists.
In relation to the particular query raised, as this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and my officials will follow the matter up.
370. Deputy Finian McGrath asked the Minister for Health his views on making medical cards assessable for all children with a disability without having to go through the entire application process, which is stressful and discriminatory toward families and towards children with an intellectual disability; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40081/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs the Deputy will be aware, in accordance with the provisions of the Health Act 1970 (as amended), medical cards are provided to persons who are, in the opinion of the HSE, unable without undue hardship to arrange GP services for themselves and their dependants. The legislation obliges the HSE, when making a decision on a person’s eligibility, to take account of the person’s financial situation. This requires the provision of information including the income and reasonable expenditure, of the applicant and his/her partner and dependants and allows the HSE to assess each application in an equitable and consistent manner. In the case of a child, the parents' income and reasonable expenditure is assessed.
Where an applicant's means are above the financial thresholds as set out in the national guidelines, the HSE routinely examines for indications of medical or social circumstances which might result in undue financial hardship in arranging medical services and, exercising discretion, may grant eligibility for a medical card on this basis. The HSE affords applicants the opportunity to furnish additional supporting information and documentation to fully take account of all the relevant circumstances that may benefit them in the assessment, including medical evidence of cost and necessary expenses.
It is clear that there are people with medical needs and it is important that they should be able to access necessary assistance in a straight forward manner. Greater discretion is being exercised by the HSE because the number of discretionary medical cards in circulation has increased from about 52,000 in mid-2014 to nearly 96,000 at the beginning of November this year. This followed the measures announced by Minister Varadkar and I last year to improve the performance of the medical card system when the "Keane" Report of the Expert Panel on Medical Need for Medical Card Eligibility was published. The Deputy may be aware that a key recommendation of that report was that a person's means should remain the main qualifier for a medical card. It also recommended that it is neither feasible nor desirable to list conditions in priority order for medical card eligibility.
As part of the measures, the HSE is ensuring a more integrated and sensitive processing of medical card applications, involving greater exchange of information between the central assessment office and the local health offices in relation to people’s medical circumstances and needs. Where a person does not qualify for a medical card, they may be provided with a GP Visit Card, appropriate therapy or other community supports or drugs and appliances under the Long Term Illness scheme, where the qualification criteria are met.
On foot of the Keane Report, the HSE established a Clinical Advisory Group to develop clinical oversight and guidance for the operation of a more compassionate and trusted medical card system. The Director General of the HSE accepted an interim recommendation of the Group to award medical card eligibility to all children under 18 years of age with a diagnosis of cancer, effective from 1 July 2015. The CAG is continuing its work on developing a framework for assessment and measurement of the burden of disease and appropriate operational guidelines for the medical card scheme and to consider and advise in relation to a more compassionate and supportive approach to include an assessment of the burden of a medical condition(s) in decisions on medical cards.
371. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Health the status of a hospital appointment for a person (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40106/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraUnder the Health Act 2004, the Health Service Executive (HSE) is required to manage and deliver, or arrange to be delivered on its behalf, health and personal social services. Section 6 of the HSE Governance Act 2013 bars the Minister for Health from directing the HSE to provide a treatment or a personal service to any individual or to confer eligibility on any individual.
The National Waiting List Management Policy, A standardised approach to managing scheduled care treatment for in-patient, day case and planned procedures, January 2014, has been developed to ensure that all administrative, managerial and clinical staff follow an agreed national minimum standard for the management and administration of waiting lists for scheduled care. This policy, which has been adopted by the Health Service Executive, sets out the processes that hospitals are to implement to manage waiting lists.
In relation to the particular query raised, as this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and my officials will follow the matter up.
372. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Health his views on the current shortage of Bacillus Calmette Guerin vaccines; when the first delivery of the vaccine may be expected; the age of a patient at which the vaccine must be administered; if alternative suppliers are being sourced; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40132/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraThere is only one licensed supplier of BCG vaccine to Ireland and to other countries within the EU. The vaccine has not been available since the end of April 2015. The licensed supplier has informed the HSE that the BCG vaccine will be delivered into Ireland shortly, the exact date is yet to be confirmed. Ireland is not the only country affected by the worldwide shortage of BCG.
Since this problem became apparent, the HSE National Immunisation Office has been in regular contact with the manufacturer of BCG and with the Health Products Regulatory Authority (HPRA) who licenses vaccines in Ireland as well as with other relevant stakeholders. The HPRA have been seeking to find an alternative supply of BCG that meets safety, quality and effectiveness standards and that could be used in Ireland. To date no appropriate alternative manufacturer of BCG vaccine has been found.
In early 2015 the HSE asked the HPRA to look at extending the shelf life of BCG vaccine from 12 months to 18 months. The HPRA reviewed the necessary documentation and agreed to extend the shelf life of any new delivery of BCG vaccine to 18 months. Any new deliveries of BCG will have an 18 month shelf life.
Tuberculosis (TB) is a notifiable disease under the Infectious Diseases (Amendment) Regulations 2011 (S.I. No. 452 of 2011). In 2014, 328 cases of TB were notified to the Health Protection Surveillance Centre, giving a national TB notification rate of 7.1 per 100,000, the lowest rate reported since surveillance commenced. According to the World Health Organisation, the definition of a low incidence TB country is one with a national TB notification rate of less than 10 cases per 100,000; Ireland is in this category.
In Ireland BCG is part of the National Childhood Immunisation Schedule and is normally given shortly after birth. However it can be given at other ages.
In Ireland the number of cases of TB has been falling and there were no cases of TB in young children in 2014. Most European countries, including the UK, Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Iceland do not give BCG vaccine to all babies. Babies are not at risk of TB because of the delay in getting BCG vaccine in Ireland.
Resolving the issue of the shortage of BCG remains a priority for the HSE.
373. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Health the number of instances of Tuberculosis in each of the years 2013 to 2015 to date; the number of instances in children, in older persons, and in the prison population; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40133/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 days please contact my Private Office and they will follow up the matter with them.
374. Deputy Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin asked the Minister for Health when a person (details supplied) in County Dublin will be notified by Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital in Crumlin in Dublin 12 of a date for a cardiac catheterisation in order to ascertain the person's suitability for cardiac surgery. [40164/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraUnder the Health Act 2004, the Health Service Executive (HSE) is required to manage and deliver, or arrange to be delivered on its behalf, health and personal social services. Section 6 of the HSE Governance Act 2013 bars the Minister for Health from directing the HSE to provide a treatment or a personal service to any individual or to confer eligibility on any individual.
In relation to the particular query raised, as this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and my officials will follow the matter up.
375. Deputy Tom Fleming asked the Minister for Health if he will examine and expedite an application for a medical card by a person (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40169/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Health Service Executive has been asked to examine this matter and to reply to the Deputy as soon as possible.
The Health Service Executive operates the General Medical Services scheme, which includes medical cards and GP visit cards, under the Health Act 1970, as amended. It has established a dedicated contact service for members of the Oireachtas specifically for queries relating to medical cards and GP visit cards, which the Deputy may wish to use for an earlier response. Contact information has issued to Oireachtas members.
If the Deputy has not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days, please contact my Private Office who will follow up the matter with them.
376. Deputy Tom Fleming asked the Minister for Health if he will examine and expedite an application for a medical card by a person (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40170/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Health Service Executive has been asked to examine this matter and to reply to the Deputy as soon as possible.
The Health Service Executive operates the General Medical Services scheme, which includes medical cards and GP visit cards, under the Health Act 1970, as amended. It has established a dedicated contact service for members of the Oireachtas specifically for queries relating to medical cards and GP visit cards, which the Deputy may wish to use for an earlier response. Contact information has issued to Oireachtas members.
If the Deputy has not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days, please contact my Private Office who will follow up the matter with them.
377. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Health the progress made by the Health Service Executive on the co-ordination of homeless services for the homeless in the Dublin region as part of its responsibility under the action plan to address homelessness; if he will outline the in-reach services for persons in emergency homeless accommodation, and if the executive has put any statistical service indicators in place to measure its performance on implementing such homeless in-reach services. [40171/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraMy Department is committed to working with all of the relevant stakeholders to ensure the full implementation of the specific health aspects of the Implementation Plan on the State's Response to Homelessness. One of the core aims of the Implementation Plan is to improve access to Primary Care Services and ensure that effective discharge protocols are in place for homeless persons being discharged from Acute hospitals and Mental Health Facilities.
The Health Service Executive (HSE) has provided about €15 million in direct funding on homeless services this year, to meet the health and in-house care needs of homeless people in the greater Dublin region. In-reach services and supports are provided by the HSE across a number of settings through an integrated, multi-disciplinary team model to ensure maximum access and improved service delivery, particularly in relation to primary care and mental health services. The HSE has assigned a senior manager to oversee the coordination of health services for homeless people in the Dublin region and also to ensure the provision of specialist in-reach services to emergency accommodation settings, where required.
The HSE is currently mapping all existing specialist health services in order to ensure adequate resources are available to in-reach into all Supported Temporary Accommodation and Temporary Emergency Accommodation. A draft suite of health outcomes for homeless persons is currently being developed which will provide a source of performance measurement pertaining to the provision of outreach and in-reach services.
378. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Health if he will ensure adequate resources are provided to St. Vincent's Hospital in Athlone in County Westmeath, which is extremely understaffed at present; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40190/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is a service matter it has been referred to the Health Service Executive for direct reply. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and they will follow up the matter with them.
379. Deputy Mary Mitchell O'Connor asked the Minister for Health the steps taken to ensure that balance is achieved between the public interest and the interests of practitioners and service providers when appointments are made to the registration boards established for designated professions under the Health and Social Care Professionals Act 2005; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40194/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraUnder the Health and Social Care Professionals Act 2005, registration boards established for the designated professions consist of 13 members, comprising 6 professional members and 7 other members. It has been the policy and practice to appoint lay people to these 7 positions thereby ensuring a lay majority on the boards.
These members include:
(i) 1 representative of the management of the public health sector, the social care sector or both sectors;
(ii) 1 representative of the management of a voluntary or private sector organisation concerned with health or social care;
(iii) 1 representative of third level educational establishments involved in the education and training of members of the profession nominated by the Minister for Education and Science; and
(iv) 4 representatives of the public interest.
My Department, in conjunction with the Public Appointments Service (PAS), currently advertises for lay vacancies on registration boards as they arise.
381. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Health the status of industrial processes established in his area under side deals concluded with trade unions in parallel with the Lansdowne Road talks in May 2015; the details of any agreements concluded to date on foot of such processes; and the costs, including anticipated costs in future years, of any agreements reached. [40221/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraA range of matters raised by the unions during the Lansdowne Road pay talks were addressed in a series of Chairman's notes. Some of the issues raised, including the grading of Hospital Group Directors of Nursing, have been brought to a conclusion. Agreement was reached that interns taking part in the Intern Scheme for Health Support Staff would be regularised into support staff positions after eighteen months of satisfactory service and a circular outlining this change to the scheme was issued this week. Nurse pay and working hours issues are being addressed in structured processes. The transfer of some tasks from NCHDs to nurses is being progressed through a series of engagements under an independent chair. Further processes will be convened shortly in respect of job evaluations in the health sector and matters raised in relation to section 39 bodies.
382. Deputy John Perry asked the Minister for Health if he will expedite an application for a medical card by a person (details supplied) in County Leitrim; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40227/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Health Service Executive has been asked to examine this matter and to reply to the Deputy as soon as possible.
The Health Service Executive operates the General Medical Services scheme, which includes medical cards and GP visit cards, under the Health Act 1970, as amended. It has established a dedicated contact service for members of the Oireachtas specifically for queries relating to medical cards and GP visit cards, which the Deputy may wish to use for an earlier response. Contact information has issued to Oireachtas members.
If the Deputy has not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days, please contact my Private Office who will follow up the matter with them.
383. Deputy Arthur Spring asked the Minister for Health if a physiotherapist who attained a qualification in a European Union state other than Ireland is allowed work in the public funded health sector. [40239/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraI have asked the HSE to respond to the Deputy directly on this matter. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and they will follow up the matter with them.
384. Deputy Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin asked the Minister for Health further to the response to Parliamentary Question No. 965 of 22 September 2015, which did not include the number of nursing and midwife vacancies by hospital in tabular form, if he will provide these numbers by hospital for each month in 2015 in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40247/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraI have asked the HSE to respond to the Deputy directly on this matter with the specific information sought. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and they will follow up the matter with them.
385. Deputy Dan Neville asked the Minister for Health the status of the registration of physical therapists under the Health and Social Care Professionals Act 2005. [40256/15]
Amharc ar fhreagra386. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for Health the status of the titles of physiotherapist and physical therapist (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40265/15]
Amharc ar fhreagra453. Deputy Olivia Mitchell asked the Minister for Health how he will respond to the recent campaign by physiotherapists to have a common register with physical therapists; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40533/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 385, 386 and 453 together.
I expect that the Physiotherapists Registration Board will soon make the necessary bye-laws under the Health and Social Care Professionals Act 2005 to allow it to establish its register early next year. On this basis, the title of physiotherapist will be protected for the exclusive use of the board's registrants when the register's 2 year transitional period ends in 2018.
I am currently examining the issue of also protecting the title of physical therapist under the Act. In other English speaking countries, the title of physical therapist is often used by physiotherapists. In Ireland, however, the title is used by a number of practitioners who are not physiotherapists but who are competing with physiotherapists in the private sector in the provision of musculoskeletal therapies.
Earlier this year I wrote to a number of relevant organisations regarding my proposal to protect the title of physical therapist as a variant of the title of physiotherapist and invited them to submit their views. The submissions are now being examined and I expect that I will make a decision on the matter before the end of the year. As you can appreciate there are many factors to consider. However, I can assure the House that my main concern will be to protect the public when it comes to decisions on this matter.
387. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for Health the status of funding for an organisation (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40268/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Government is committed to protecting frontline health and personal social services needs for people with disabilities. The Government currently provides funding of approximately €1.5 billion to the Disability Services Programme through the Health Service Executive's National Service Plan for 2015.
In 2015, the HSE is seeking to maximise the provision of services within available resources and to maintaining a consistent level to that provided in 2014, by providing the following specialist disability services:
- residential services to around 9,000 people with a disability;
- day services to over 22,000 people with intellectual and physical disabilities;
- respite residential support of 190,000 overnights for people with intellectual and physical disabilities;
- 3.9 million hours of Personal Assistant / Home Support Hours.
Additional funding of €6 million has been allocated in the HSE National Service Plan in 2015 to provide day places for an estimated 1,400 young people finishing school and rehabilitative (life-skills) training. €4m in additional funding has also been allocated in the Plan to deliver an increase in the services for children with disabilities and reduce waiting lists under the Progressing Disability Services for Children and Young People (0-18s) Programme.
I have been informed that the HSE is acutely aware of the resource shortfall presented by Camphill and is currently engaging with them to develop an agreed set of proposals to resolve the challenges over an agreed period of time. This includes a commitment to supporting the organisation to reconfigure the current model of service and funding arrangements to a more sustainable model while still maintaining the particular ethos of the service.
I understand that as part of this process of engagement, the HSE requested Camphill to consider how its model of service provision may change over the coming years as Disability Services are reformed. The HSE will work closely with Camphill to shape a five year plan to secure the additional resources required to ensure the future of the organisation in a sustainable way.
I have been assured by the HSE that it will continue to work with Camphill and be as supportive as possible within current financial constraints.
388. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Health the status of a cataract operation in Cork University Hospital for a person (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40270/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraUnder the Health Act 2004, the Health Service Executive (HSE) is required to manage and deliver, or arrange to be delivered on its behalf, health and personal social services. Section 6 of the HSE Governance Act 2013 bars the Minister for Health from directing the HSE to provide a treatment or a personal service to any individual or to confer eligibility on any individual.
The National Waiting List Management Policy, A standardised approach to managing scheduled care treatment for in-patient, day case and planned procedures, January 2014, has been developed to ensure that all administrative, managerial and clinical staff follow an agreed national minimum standard for the management and administration of waiting lists for scheduled care. This policy, which has been adopted by the Health Service Executive, sets out the processes that hospitals are to implement to manage waiting lists.
In relation to the particular query raised, as this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and my officials will follow the matter up.
389. Deputy Gabrielle McFadden asked the Minister for Health why a person (details supplied) in County Westmeath was informed by a hospital that it would be September 2016 before that person could undergo a certain procedure, but that if that person went private, the procedure would be carried out within one month; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40273/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraUnder the Health Act 2004, the Health Service Executive (HSE) is required to manage and deliver, or arrange to be delivered on its behalf, health and personal social services. Section 6 of the HSE Governance Act 2013 bars the Minister for Health from directing the HSE to provide a treatment or a personal service to any individual or to confer eligibility on any individual.
The National Waiting List Management Policy, A standardised approach to managing scheduled care treatment for in-patient, day case and planned procedures, January 2014, has been developed to ensure that all administrative, managerial and clinical staff follow an agreed national minimum standard for the management and administration of waiting lists for scheduled care. This policy, which has been adopted by the Health Service Executive, sets out the processes that hospitals are to implement to manage waiting lists.
In relation to the particular query raised, as this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and my officials will follow the matter up.
390. Deputy Eoghan Murphy asked the Minister for Health his plans to reverse cuts in an area (details supplied) in Dublin 18, so that appropriate transport will be provided. [40280/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraEach Local Health Office area in the Health Service Executive (HSE) has a dedicated Disability Manager to coordinate the delivery of services to people with disabilities. It is open to the individual and their family to pursue this matter with the Disability Manager for their area who can be contacted at Block B, The Civic Centre, Main Street, Bray, Co. Wicklow, telephone 01-2744205.
As the Deputy's question relates to service matters, I have arranged for the question to be referred to the HSE for direct reply to the Deputy. If the Deputy has not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days, he can contact my Private Office and they will follow the matter up with the HSE.
