Mr. Damien McCallion:

The supports for people on the ground were highlighted by Dr. Russell. The colposcopy units are under the management of the acute hospitals. The hospitals run the colposcopy clinics and the programme then funds and has a contract with the colposcopy clinics. I spoke to Dr. Russell myself. All the hospitals have asked us to ensure the necessary supports are in place in terms of employee assistance and so on. There may have been variation between hospitals in this regard over the past year but we are going to make sure that whatever is needed is provided. As we have all said and agreed, the service has been through a very difficult 18 months and continues to be under pressure. It is a bit like the laboratories in that we have to try to retain and stabilise the service and then deal with future demand. That is the purpose of the group I mentioned in terms of considering how to utilise the funding provided by the Department under the service plan and the changes to which Dr. McKenna referred.