Written Answers Nos. 2123-2141
2123. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Minister for Health if he will institute a review in relation to the practice of not permitting a birthing partner to be present with persons giving birth due to Covid-19 restrictions; his views on whether this is proportionate; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19916/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
2124. Deputy Martin Browne asked the Minister for Health the number of patients on methadone maintenance therapy in each county; the length of time patients spend on such therapy on average by county; and the supports available to help persons become fully drug free by county. [19917/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to investigate the issues raised by the Deputy and to reply to him directly.
2125. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Health when the appropriate mental health service will be facilitated in the case of a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19918/21]
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.
2127. Deputy Alan Dillon asked the Minister for Health if private ambulance services have been contracted by CHOs to support the National Ambulance Service roll-out of group 3 (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19923/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly, as soon as possible.
2128. Deputy Alan Dillon asked the Minister for Health the details of the key performance indicators or associated metrics that will be used to monitor the vaccination centres over the coming weeks and months that do not feed an us-versus-them approach to the roll-out of the vaccines; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19924/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly, as soon as possible.
2129. Deputy Mattie McGrath asked the Minister for Health the position regarding public services which remain restricted while at level 5 in view of the new roadmap for reopening the country which refers to the loosening of restrictions on specific dates rather than the move to new levels; his views on whether it can be reasonably argued that the country remains at level 5 when a number of restrictions have been lifted; if the previous roadmap to living with Covid-19 is still in use; if so, when he expects a move to the lower levels; when all essential public services which are currently closed as a result of being at level 5 will reopen; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19925/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraIreland remains in Level 5 of the ‘Framework for Restrictive Measures in Response to COVID-19’. Any measures introduced at any level of the Plan are aimed at limiting the spread and damage of COVID-19, and are necessary to protect our key priorities of supporting and maintaining health and social care services, keeping education and childcare services open and protecting the most vulnerable members of our communities. Full details of Level 5 measures in place can be found on Gov.ie (https://www.gov.ie/en/publication/2dc71-level-5/).
The Government announced a slight easing of restrictions within Level 5 from 12 April in recognition of the significant impact that the extended period of Level 5 restrictions is having on people. The focus of this easing of measures is on enabling more outdoor activities in order to improve the health and wellbeing of society. The situation will be subject to ongoing review taking account of the evolving epidemiological situation, the impact of the reopening of priority services, and available evidence in relation to vaccine deployment, uptake and effectiveness. The NPHET and the Government will consider the position again at the start of May.
The ‘Framework for Restrictive Measures in Response to COVID-19’ remains in use and is included in the Government’s current strategy COVID-19 Resilience and Recovery 2021 - The Path Ahead. The 5 Level Framework outlines the broad measures which will apply depending on the level of the virus at any given time. The Plan is designed to help everyone – individuals, organisations and sectors – to better understand, anticipate and prepare for the measures that might be introduced to contain transmission of the virus.
Significant progress has been made on suppressing the virus due to the huge effort of our citizens. By working together, we have saved lives and limited the impact of the disease on society in Ireland. We all must continue to do everything possible to avoid the virus spreading.
2130. Deputy Mattie McGrath asked the Minister for Health when maternity hospital visitor restrictions will be lifted; the continued justification of restricting a partners access; if he will review the matter urgently especially considering the lower levels of patients with Covid-19 in hospitals; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19926/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
2131. Deputy Mattie McGrath asked the Minister for Health the vaccine that has been provided to student nurses; if it is still the position of his Department and the HSE to force student nurses to take a Covid-19 vaccine if they want to continue their studies given the change in guidelines in relation to a vaccine (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19927/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly, as soon as possible.
2132. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for Health if he will provide a link to or advise of the location in which to access the regulations in relation to mandatory hotel quarantine. [19928/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Health (Amendment) Act 2021 amends the Health Act 1947 to provide for a system of mandatory quarantine at designated facilities. It can be accessed here:
http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/2021/act/1/enacted/en/html
2133. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health if additional funding will be provided to resource additional eye clinic liaison officer posts in ophthalmology clinics that provide service outside Dublin; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19930/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
2134. Deputy Neasa Hourigan asked the Minister for Health the progress in relation to plans to implement an acute electronic health record system in the new national children’s hospital; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19944/21]
Amharc ar fhreagra2135. Deputy Neasa Hourigan asked the Minister for Health the progress on developing clinical ICT systems to provide the required infrastructure to support effective clinical decision making; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19945/21]
Amharc ar fhreagra2137. Deputy Neasa Hourigan asked the Minister for Health the progress of plans to provide cloud infrastructure to the whole health service to support a more secure and safe data environment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19947/21]
Amharc ar fhreagra2139. Deputy Neasa Hourigan asked the Minister for Health his plans to establish an ehealth forum; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19949/21]
Amharc ar fhreagra2257. Deputy Neasa Hourigan asked the Minister for Health the progress on the implementation of an electronic health record system for community-based care to connect records across the system and support integrated models of care; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20304/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 2134, 2135, 2137, 2139 and 2257 together.
An acute electronic health record (EHR) for the new children's hospital is currently in phase 2 of a two phase open procurement process. Subject to confirmation of actual costs resulting from that procurement, and acceptance of the resulting business case and government agreement, the resulting EHR will be implemented in the children's hospital to enable commissioning of the facility in line with the construction schedule.
Delivery of integrated care into the community is a fundamental objective of the Sláintecare reform programme. I am advised that community and other eHealth initiatives will be implemented in line with HSE plans, subject to the normal sanction process related to ICT investments that is managed by the Department of Expenditure and Reform approval.
As part of the modernisation of the health service, a programme of work continues within the HSE to refresh existing technology, replace and update hardware and software and to progress the implementation of new digital technology and services such as cloud infrastructure and national clinical systems, in a timely, appropriate and cost-effective manner. I am advised that it is not the HSE's intention to introduce large-scale cloud infrastructure on a national basis into the health system in 2021 although this increasingly becoming a feature of health systems internationally. Having said that, the HSE have leveraged Cloud technology to facilitate an agile response to the pandemic. We are still in a COVID-19 environment and most eHealth and digital focus is currently on the development and implementation of support systems to the national COVID response. On a national basis, to date there has been the successful development and implementation of the COVID Tracker App supporting test and trace processes and the introduction of the public portal for COVID vaccination appointments.
The HSE has development, implementation and operational responsibility for cloud services, national clinical systems, electronic health records and an eHealth forum and I have asked them to separately reply to the Deputy on these matters.
2136. Deputy Neasa Hourigan asked the Minister for Health his plans to implement financial corporate systems to improve accountability and ensure funds can follow patient activity; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19946/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe need to improve financial systems in place across our health system is well recognised. The Health Service Executive is currently undertaking the rollout of a Single Integrated Financial and Procurement Management System (IFMS) which will enhance the financial reporting underpinning operational performance against strategic objectives. Its development is one of the HSE’s key non-clinical priorities.
By mid-April 2024 it is anticipated that the IFMS will cover 90% of the public health system, with roll-out prioritised by areas of significant expenditure. However, following this, work will continue to deploy the system. It is expected that by February 2028 coverage will rise to 99%.
Enhancing governance and accountability in the health and social care service is also integral to the overall Sláintecare reform programme. The Sláintecare Citizen Care Masterplan aims to inform policy decision-making around equitable allocation of resources of all types and will include a population-based health needs assessment and segmentation exercises as well as a population-based resource allocation (PBRA) funding model.
Allocating resources according to a population’s health and social care needs will enable more integrated, equitable care that can be more clearly linked to health outcomes and reducing health inequalities, and to value-for-money assessment. It will allow for the "money to follow the patient".
In addition, the Programme for Government 2020 commits to bringing forward detailed proposals on six Regional Health Areas to enable delivery of local services for patients that are safe, effective, and fairly distributed. Work on this will incorporate outputs of the Citizen Care Masterplan and aligns with the Sláintecare objective of population-based service planning and resource allocation for improved corporate and financial accountability.
2138. Deputy Neasa Hourigan asked the Minister for Health the progress of plans to implement a digital maternity system to support the National Maternity Strategy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19948/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
2140. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health the number of eye clinic liaison officer posts in ophthalmology clinics by county; if he will fund seven posts resourced through the HSE to provide the service outside Dublin as per the request by an organisation (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19953/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
2141. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health the number of cases of neglect in nursing homes reported by the HSE and HIQA in 2020; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19956/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Chief Inspector for Social Services is notified by persons in charge of nursing homes of many issues pertaining to the care and welfare of residents. Registered providers or persons in charge of a designated centre, are legally required to notify the Chief Inspector within certain timeframes about incidents, events or changes affecting the wellbeing of residents. The Office of the Chief Inspector refers to these as monitoring notifications.
The Health Information and Quality Authority has advised my Department that neglect is not a commonly used term in instances of solicited (information submitted by a provider otherwise referred to as mandatory notifications) or unsolicited information (information submitted by relatives, members of the public, staff) submitted to the Chief Inspector.
In 2020, HIQA received 1,127 NF06 mandatory notifications (any allegation, suspected or confirmed of abuse of any resident), of these, 74 specify an allegation of neglect of the resident. Issues which may be considered neglect, such as inadequate safeguarding measures, failing to meet the needs of residents and delays in accessing medical attention do arise within unsolicited information.
HIQA has informed the Department that last year 1,213 pieces of unsolicited information were received, however a breakdown of how many of these could be described as ‘neglect’ is not currently available.
I have asked the HSE to reply directly to the Deputy in relation to the aspect of his question appropriate to the Executive.
