Michael Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent) | Oireachtas source

On behalf of the secretariat and members, I thank Dr. Hannah Linane and Dr. Una Molloy from the Irish Association of Palliative Care; Ms Paula O'Reilly and Professor Susan O'Reilly, from the Irish Hospice Foundation; and Dr. Miriam Colleran and Ms Emer Maguire, from Hope Ireland who all do excellent work. I note the care, kindness and consideration that is given by people who work in all the witnesses' fields when it comes to palliative care and dying. They touch people when they are at their most vulnerable and at the worst time in their lives, when they are saying goodbye and getting ready to say goodbye to a person they do not want to say goodbye to, who they want to hold onto for as long as possible. The witnesses make that passage much easier with their kindness. Let the message go out to the people who work in their organisations that we humbly thank them from the bottom of our hearts.

Again, I thank the witnesses for engaging with the committee today. They have given us a lot to think about it. Their expertise and knowledge is wanted by this committee and will inform our future deliberations.