Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 21 January 2016
88. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Defence the number and the percentage of Irish Defence Forces personnel who were prescribed the drug Lariam in each of the years 2001 to 2015, in tabular form. [2557/16]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs the Deputy will be aware, there are three anti-malarial drugs in use by the Defence Forces namely Lariam (mefloquine), Malarone and Doxycycline. The choice of medication is a medical decision made by Medical Officers in the Defence Forces having regard to the specific circumstances of the mission and the individual member of the Defence Forces. I can advise the Deputy that, since 2001, Defence Forces’ personnel have completed approximately 7,000 tours of duty in Malaria-prone areas. It should be borne in mind that an individual may complete a number of such tours during their service. I have previously indicated to the Deputy that information in relation to the specific medication prescribed to each individual travelling overseas is retained in an individual’s medical file. While Defence Forces’ management systems are not designed to collate the information requested by the Deputy from individual files, the Director of the Medical Branch has advised that the vast majority of personnel completing these tours of duty were prescribed Lariam as a malarial chemo-prophylaxis.
