Martin Browne (Tipperary, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Cathaoirleach for allowing me to participate. I welcome the witnesses. Our committee has met them on several occasions. The first thing that jumped out at us was the figure that 11 million people a year worldwide die from something that is preventable. We thought after speaking to Mr. Staunton that we might get legislation similar to that in New York. We have asked the Oireachtas Library and Research Service to examine it to see whether the same type of system can work here. We are waiting for it to come back to us. I ask this committee to get on board so that, together, we can work on a cross-party paper. Deputy O'Dowd has been with us on this. We should all push to have a system such as that which the families are requesting.

Communication is a simple issue. It has been raised at our committee and again here today. September is set aside as sepsis month. This is crazy when we hear the figures involved. There should be communication every day of the week, 12 months a year. Ms O'Mahony said that sepsis kills more people every year than five types of cancers combined. No one would give out about the money spent on cancer campaigns, road safety campaigns or any other campaign that saves people's lives. As Mr. Staunton said, these are not figures; they are lives. Oireachtas committees and politicians need to get serious and insist that such a campaign is run 12 months a year across the board so that the Stauntons, Mr. Hughes, Ms Phoenix and the Irish Sepsis Foundation do not need to come before our committees to beg for help to get word out there.

When we get something back from the Oireachtas Library and Research Service on how we can move forward, I ask that this committee come on board in order that, between the two committees, we can try to get something done. I am not looking for an answer on this today; it is something the committee can discuss afterwards. This needs to be fought on a bigger scale, so that families are not the people who need to push the issue. It is we as legislators who need to push it from now on. I thank the Cathaoirleach for allowing me to speak and I thank the witnesses.