Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Wednesday, 3 April 2019

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health

CervicalCheck Screening Programme Update: Discussion (Resumed)

Mr. Damien McCallion:

Yes, I would not doubt them. I am simply explaining that there have been peaks where there have been major gaps in capacity. As the figure has grown, we have acquired capacity, some of which is temporary which means we have it for a period. One of the key issues is to get the capacity in quickly. It needs to come through the existing providers so the process of connecting a new laboratory probably takes four or five months. It is not a simple plug and play process when one uses new laboratories, aside from the issues raised earlier on the quality side.