Dr. Lorraine Doherty:

As the Senator will note, the strategic intent for the programme is to move towards HPV primary screening, and we have established an active planning process for that. We have an overarching HPV steering group, a HPV project group and a clinical advisory group. We have also undertaken a programme of visits to other centres which have introduced HPV primary screening to learn from them the key things we need to consider within the planning and implementation phrases. We have established a number of work streams around laboratory issues, communication issues for patients and professionals, training and education for professionals, clinical pathways, colposcopy impact assessment and our IT system. All of those are factors within the work programme that need to be addressed.

What is critical to taking this forward is addressing the backlog to make sure that we have capacity to take forward this new part of the screening programme and to ensure we have a contract in place with a provider to provide this service. My colleagues have been working on developing the tender arrangements for a provider for HPV primary screening. There is a great deal of work to be done, but I must stress we must have stability within the programme before we can start moving to a completely new mode of screening. That is essential. We must make sure that those who will be called for screening are fully aware of what HPV primary screening means and that they receive all that information before the screening programme starts. Very importantly, we need to make sure that those who will be responsible for delivering the programme, that is, the smear takers, the GPs and the practice nurses, are fully supported with professional information and training. As the Senator will note from what I have described, a considerable body of work is to be undertaken to reach the end point at which we deliver this programme.