Lynn Ruane (Independent) | Oireachtas source

That should be transparent. We do not want a situation whereby methadone patients do not receive the care they should be receiving while also being seen as an additional resource to a GP. That could inhibit the other professionals, such as nurses, stepping into that space and prescribing.

I am interested in the rights-based approach. This is a bit of a side note, but I am thinking of people in places of detention and Garda stations. I have a long history of friends being left in Garda stations to the point of sickness. They are left without access to methadone and are told to wait for the doctor. That does not mean that people are not questioned. They are brought to a point of sickness and further questioned. They are told that when they engage with and talk to the gardaí, the doctor will come. I am wondering about the role that nurses can play in such circumstances. I would hate to think that methadone was being used as a tool in a coercive style of policing. If that is not the case, and doctors are required to prescribe, are nurses also being leaned on in places of detention? Should we be making sure that option is considered? If nurses were to become prescribers, that could happen not only in hospital and primary care settings but also in the justice system.