Ms Rosemary Smyth:

First, the commission welcomes telemedicine and has done so, and it has advised the Minister in the context that it is not filling a gap, that the appropriate resources need to be there to refer people on and that the services need to be enhanced. It is not to fill a gap without having the full support structures in place. Second, it is most important that those who are providing the service are regulated either by an oversight body like ourselves or a professional regulator, so there is governance and oversight of such a service.