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

I get that. I will come back to the issue.

I have questions for Mr. Watt. He intimated there was an exciting development relating to the technological universities wishing to take some of the postgraduate medical training. Can he update us in that regard?

On medical cards, I am a Government Deputy and it is Government policy but I hear a lot of kick-back from GPs regarding people who have serious illnesses such as cancer, diabetes and so on being unable to get appointments for ten days, two weeks or three weeks because of repeat visits that may not always be necessary. How can that be reviewed and kept under control to ensure those who need to access their GPs can do so?

In the context of Dublin, Mr. Watt previously referred to two elective hospitals. Before we resumed the session, he and I had a private chat at which I intimated I would be raising this issue. This relates to workforce planning. If an unconscious person is picked up by an ambulance or another emergency service at the side of the road, I presume the emergency services bring the person to hospital. They do not know what medication the person may be on, whether the person has had illnesses or what his or her medical records are. There is also the issue of identification and whether the person wishes to volunteer for organ donation and so on. The hospital system can be thrown into a chaotic response in trying to determine how to treat that patient. As a result of a person going through that scenario, a not-for-profit company has come up with a card with a QR code. I have a sample one here. I know Mr. Watt has things to say on this. In essence, the emergency responders would be able to capture the details held on the card, such as the person's name and personal details, as well as his or her medical, GP, hospital and prescription history and other matters. What is the stance of the Department in that regard? What plans or response does it have?