Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I apologise for my late arrival, but I had another engagement. While I only caught the tail-end of the presentations, I am familiar with the subject matter under discussion.

How can we improve the public information programme on all of the issues with which the organisations are dealing? We hear about various conditions and how matters have progressed to the extent that it is not possible to deal with them in the way that it is sought to deal with them. There is space for a serious public information programme based on facts, rather than scaring the public, to make it aware of the issues in question. How do the organisations see such a programme being put into operation?

The Sláintecare report addressed the question of diagnostics. From their experience, are the organisations satisfied that its proposals are adequate?

New neurological conditions such as Guillain–Barré syndrome appeared to have been difficult to diagnose until recently. Rare conditions seem to present more regularly than anticipated. As a result, diagnosis was slow, which was to the detriment of the patient. The delay in diagnosis could have been two to six months, meaning that patients and their families suffered considerable stress.