Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I intend to visit Waterford hospital shortly and I made clear in the statement I released when I published the Herity report and in my correspondence with the HSE in the context of the service plan that I expect those service improvements to be advanced and progressed in the context of the HSE's 2017 service plan. I expect to deliver on them early in 2017 and I will have an opportunity to detail more of that when I visit the hospital shortly. I look forward to doing that.

Senator Swanick made an important point on primary care. I had the honour of addressing a practice nurses conference in Santry recently. They left me in no doubt about this valid point we are discussing. The GP has an important role in primary care but there is an issue about resourcing the practice nurse to do more as part of the GP's team. These issues will be considered and addressed in the context of the GP contract negotiations. The negotiations cannot just be about the GP and the State; they have to be about the GP and the GP's team of support, including other health care professionals. That will be addressed in that context.

I refer to Senator Dolan's questions. I am aware of his work in this area for a long time and I admire his commitment. It is important to have him in the House on behalf of the 600,000 people with disabilities. We are lucking to have Deputy Finian McGrath as our Minister of State with responsibility for disabilities and he will go through the specific issues raised by the Senator but we will make sure disability issues are front and centre in all our Department's strategies.

The neuro-rehabilitation strategy is important. I had an excellent meeting recently. I would like to acknowledge Deputy O'Reilly's colleague, Councillor Natalie Treacy, who has done superb work in this area. Councillor Treacy and representatives of the Neurological Alliance of Ireland, MS Ireland and another organisation came to see me recently. I asked them informally to do some work with me on the need to improve our neuro-rehabilitation services. We will detail improvements in the service plan for 2017 but the key element - I think there was agreement at the meeting - in this regard is the need to publish the implementation plan as quickly as possible. It is due shortly and it is a priority. At least then, we will have the long awaited roadmap. In fairness to the HSE and all those working on the strategy's implementation plan, they had the common sense that when the feedback came in from the consultation that people were not satisfied with the implementation plan to have another go at it to try to make it better. I expect the implementation plan to be published shortly. I also expect to visit the National Rehabilitation Hospital in Dún Laoghaire shortly. I have asked again that the delegation would accompany me because while there is a significant project of work planned for the hospital, which is exciting and will result in significant improvements for patients, there is a bigger campus. We should have a discussion about a master plan and look on the development at the hospital as phase 1 with a view that more needs to be done.

We also have to look in the context of our hospital groups structure at the ability of some of our lower level of acuity hospitals to do more in the rehabilitation space. I think of County Louth when I reference that. Our Lady of Lourdes is the acute hospital but the stroke rehabilitation work being done in the county hospital in Dundalk is impressive and it wants to do more. I visited Roscommon hospital recently to announce and progress funding for its rehabilitation unit. The idea that all roads lead to Dún Laoghaire must be challenged because of the significant burden that places on families and support structures.