John Lahart (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

It is important to be aware of the geography. For older people, losing a GP is significant because a personal relationship can go back over a lifetime, with their children also having been under the care of the same GP. Having to move on can be difficult.

When Mr. Reid spoke earlier about the enhanced community care programme, he said that "its objective in line with Sláintecare, is to deliver increased levels of healthcare locally with service delivery reoriented towards general practice, primary care and community-based services". I would like this committee to take up this theme later in the year. Pharmacists proved their worth during the pandemic, but they are not included in this. Their union representatives are good people. If I walk into a local pharmacist with an insect bite or something like that, he or she can identify it and probably accurately diagnose it but he or she cannot give me anything for it. I have to go to my GP. There is certainly a role for pharmacists in the roll-out of free contraception in the community and they have demonstrated this. Without them, the vaccination roll-out would not have achieved the targets that were achieved. However, they are not included in this. I think they are keen to play a role in what I would loosely call community medicine.