Sandra McLellan (Cork East, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the delegation for the presentation. We have had some really good presentations this morning, outlining many problems and offering a number of solutions. We had a very lengthy discussion that ran on past noon. I will mention a few issues that arose. Deputy Kelleher mentioned how we, as public representatives, try to act on behalf of vulnerable people. Relatives might contact us as a last resort and, on occasion, it can be quite difficult for us to navigate the health system. Another point was made this morning regarding one of the services run by Ms Eileen Fitzgerald that sometimes front-line staff working in hospital services and local managers are unaware of the inclusion of advocacy in service agreements and the role we might play. Sometimes we might make representations and receive no reply because the staff do not recognise what we are trying to do and that we are looking to help. It is an issue.

A point made about the issue of complaints by the Ombudsman, Mr. Peter Tyndall, was that people find it hard to navigate the complaints system or do not know how to make a complaint in hospitals. People are often nervous of making such complaints because of the potential knock-on effect on care for a person. As Deputy Kelleher noted, as everybody knows everybody else, people might be afraid of getting a person working in the care system into trouble.

We must address this issue and make it easier for people. In the course of the study by the Ombudsman, it emerged that 800 different people deal with complaints in the HSE. That is the reason I welcome, on the back of the study, that the HSE has established a national complaints management office and I hope it will be easier for all of us to access it. I also hope it will be fully aware of advocacy and be happy to deal with the public representatives.

How will advocacy be funded and will funding be guaranteed? What will the training and professional background be of advocates? This morning I asked about how we can measure the quality of advocates. Another issue I raised concerned migrants and the diversity in our country. How do we match advocates to that?