Seán Conlan (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the witnesses. I represent Fine Gael in the Cavan-Monaghan constituency. I very much welcome the directive on access to European health care services. We are almost 20 years into a peace process and on a practical day-to-day basis there must be benefits from the peace process in health care and education for ordinary residents living in peripheral areas, but this has not been driven fast or far enough. Many people along the Border go to GPs in the North. Those living in Monaghan may go to a GP in Armagh. If an emergency occurs family members must drive them to Craigavon Area Hospital rather than getting an ambulance because the ambulance will not cross the Border. These issues need to be sorted out. They are practical measures which should happen on a day-to-day basis for ordinary residents on both sides of the Border.

While the directive is welcome it is discriminatory because there is inequality of access. People who do not have money cannot avail of it as one must pay upfront for the service. If one has it one will get it, but if one does not one will not. A European directive should not be framed in this directive.

I will give a practical example of what could be done at cross-Border level with regard to emergency services such as ambulances. For many people in Monaghan who attend the GP in Craigavon or Keady in Armagh the nearest hospital is Craigavon Area Hospital. It is important these services are provided. I welcome the air emergency helicopter ambulance which has been introduced as it has been used a number of times and has been very beneficial in the Monaghan area. I commend the HSE for putting the service in place.

With regard to alcohol and drugs, there are Cuan Mhuire facilities in my home town of Ballybay in Monaghan and in Newry. This service is provided by Sr. Consilio who receives no funding from the HSE. The service is badly needed in the area and many of those who attend have alcohol, gambling and drug addictions. They are recovering and may be homeless, but no service is provided by the State in the Border area. A voluntary service provided by Sr. Consilio has had to be put in place instead of having services provided by the HSE, or by the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety in Northern Ireland. The service is living on handouts and needs statutory funding from the HSE and the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety in Northern Ireland to ensure the service is provided in the Border area. Sr. Consilio would not have needed to open the centre if services were provided by the state on both sides of the Border. More needs to be done.

As a first practical step, the HSE needs to engage with Cuan Mhuire and try to provide it with a service. They are getting some ad hoc funding from the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government to keep going but there is nothing coming from the HSE. That needs to be addressed immediately.
These are the initial points but I would be more than happy to engage, if I can, on the day to day experience of people along the Border. There was hope 20 years ago that services would be developed - some were put in place at the time between Monaghan hospital, Omagh, Dungannon and Craigavon - but the process must be driven much faster. The idea of cross-Border health services is not an abstract thought but it is a practical daily need of people living along the Border. There must be joined-up thinking. Perhaps a small, dedicated team from both the HSE and the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety in Northern Ireland could ensure this can happen. We must remove obstacles so we can achieve a proper level of health care at the nearest hospitals on both sides of the Border.