Written Answers Nos. 309-326
309. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Health if his attention has been drawn to the fact that HSE staff workshops (details supplied) have found that there is fundamental misunderstanding as to the meaning and implications of wardship within the HSE; and his plans to have this misunderstanding addressed. [5310/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is a service matter relating to staff workshops on quality improvement the question has been referred to the HSE for attention and direct reply to the Deputy.
310. Deputy Peter Fitzpatrick asked the Minister for Health when a person (details supplied) will receive a medical appointment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5312/18]
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 HSE, 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.
311. Deputy Kathleen Funchion asked the Minister for Health the percentage of persons from County Tipperary who are inpatients in the department of psychiatry, St. Luke’s Hospital, County Kilkenny. [5313/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is a service matter I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond directly to the Deputy as soon as possible.
312. Deputy Fiona O'Loughlin asked the Minister for Health if the situation of a person (details supplied) regarding child and adolescent mental health services, CAMHS, procedures will be investigated; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5316/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is a service matter I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond directly to the Deputy as soon as possible.
313. Deputy Fiona O'Loughlin asked the Minister for Health the status of the development of a renal unit at Tallaght hospital; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5322/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraHealth capital funding was outlined in the recently published Public Service Estimates for 2018 and the HSE is currently developing its Capital Plan for 2018-2021.
The Government is preparing a new National Development Plan for the period 2018-2027, which is expected to be published alongside and in support of the forthcoming new National Planning Framework, to sustain national economic and social progress over the long term.
The Renal Dialysis Unit at Tallaght Hospital has attained planning permission and is currently at tender stage.
314. Deputy Alan Farrell asked the Minister for Health the status of a medical card application by a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5343/18]
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 was issued to Oireachtas members.
315. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Health when a person (details supplied) in County Donegal will receive an appointment for an orthopaedic assessment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5347/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe 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 follows an agreed national minimum standard for the management and administration of waiting lists for scheduled care. This policy, which has been adopted by the HSE, sets out the processes that hospitals are to implement to manage waiting lists.
In response to the particular query raised, as this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to you directly.
316. Deputy James Browne asked the Minister for Health the counties without 24-7 mental health supports; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5349/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is a service matter I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond directly to the Deputy as soon as possible.
317. Deputy James Browne asked the Minister for Health the expenditure incurred in agency fees in 2017 by the HSE in the provision of mental health services. [5350/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraI have asked the HSE to respond to the Deputy directly on this matter.
318. Deputy James Browne asked the Minister for Health the number of additional mental health staff recruited in 2017; and the nature of the positions filled. [5351/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is a service matter I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond directly to the Deputy as soon as possible.
319. Deputy James Browne asked the Minister for Health the number of child and adolescent mental health services, CAMHS, teams that offer an out-of-hours service by county in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5353/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is a service matter I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond directly to the Deputy as soon as possible.
320. Deputy James Browne asked the Minister for Health the number of persons waiting for a child and adolescent mental health service appointment in each local health office, LHO; and the number waiting zero to three, three to six, six to nine, nine to 12 and more than 12 months, respectively. [5354/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is a service matter I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond directly to the Deputy as soon as possible.
321. Deputy Alan Kelly asked the Minister for Health the definition of the term "meaningful intervention" in order for a patient contact to be considered valid for the purposes of the continuous professional competence requirements for emergency medical technicians; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5355/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Pre-Hospital Emergency Care Council (PHECC) is an independent statutory body with responsibility for professional regulation in the area of pre-hospital emergency care including the recognition of professional qualifications.
Accordingly, the Deputy's query has been referred to PHECC for direct response.
322. Deputy Alan Kelly asked the Minister for Health if a person who successfully completed their national qualification in emergency medical technology or NQEMT examinations at emergency medical technician level in March 2017 and was duly entered onto the Pre-Hospital Emergency Care Council, PHECC, register, will be subject to audit for the purposes of continuous professional competence in respect of the cycle ending in October 2017 at some date in the future; if not, if they will only begin to be subject to audit for periods post October 2017; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5356/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Pre-Hospital Emergency Care Council (PHECC) is an independent statutory body with responsibility for professional regulation in the area of pre-hospital emergency care including the recognition of professional qualifications.
Accordingly, the Deputy's query has been referred to PHECC for direct response.
323. Deputy Alan Kelly asked the Minister for Health the date on which a person (details supplied) will have surgery carried out; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5357/18]
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 HSE, 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.
324. Deputy Pat Deering asked the Minister for Health the measures he will introduce to make general practice more attractive to young doctors; his plans to review the FEMPI legislation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5364/18]
Amharc ar fhreagra332. Deputy Fiona O'Loughlin asked the Minister for Health the progress on the general practitioner contractual review process that is under way; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5391/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 324 and 332 together.
The development of primary care is central to the Government's objective to deliver a high-quality, integrated and cost effective health service for patients in Ireland. The Programme for Government commits to shifting the model of Irish healthcare towards a more comprehensive and accessible service that can deliver better patient care closer to home in communities across the country. The Sláintecare report of the Oireachtas Committee on the Future of Healthcare supported a shift to primary and community-based care.
General Practitioners play an important role in the primary care system. There is a clear need to modernise the GMS contract and ensure that general practice is a viable and rewarding career for medical graduates. My aim is to develop a contract which has a population health focus, providing in particular for health promotion and disease prevention and for the structured ongoing care of chronic conditions. A new contract must be flexible and be able to respond to the changing nature of the GP workforce. It must also include provisions in relation to service quality and standards, performance, accountability and transparency. This will be key in making general practice a more attractive career. I am confident that with the continued constructive engagement of the parties involved, progress on these important issues can be made in the period ahead.
The Government is also committed to the continued development of GP capacity to ensure that patients across the country continue to have access to GP services and that general practice is sustainable in all areas into the future. I want to ensure that existing GP services are retained and that general practice remains an attractive career option for newly qualified GPs.
Efforts undertaken in recent years to increase the number of practising GPs include changes to the entry provisions to the GMS scheme to accommodate more flexible/shared GMS/GP contracts, and to the retirement provisions for GPs under the GMS scheme, allowing GPs to hold GMS contracts until their 72nd birthday, as well as the introduction of enhanced supports for rural GP practices. These steps should help to address the future demand for GPs by enticing GPs who may have ceased practicing for family or other reasons back into the workforce, facilitating GPs to work past the standard retirement age and encouraging more GPs to work in rural areas.
Separately, the State is seeking to train more GPs to provide GP services to the population. In 2009, there were 120 GP training places and in 2018 there are 198 places available, an increase of 65% over this nine-year period. The Government is committed to further increasing this number to 259 places annually in future years.
As with other health professionals, GPs were subject to fee reductions under FEMPI. In the context of the publication by my colleague, the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, of the Public Service Pay and Pension Bill 2017, on 7 November 2017, I announced that in 2018 I will undertake a process of engagement with representative bodies of contracted health professionals, aimed at putting in place a new multi-annual approach to fees, in return for service improvement and contractual reform and in line with Government priorities for the health service. I am currently considering, along with the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, the most appropriate approach in this regard. I expect engagement to begin shortly.
325. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Health when the HSE capital and property steering group will next meet; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5366/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraMy Department has referred this matter to the Health Service Executive and asked them to provide the Deputy with the information requested directly.
326. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Health when care workers for a signed-off care package can be provided for a person (details supplied) in Dublin 9; the reason for the delay; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5369/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is a service matter I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond directly to the Deputy as soon as possible.
