Martin Browne (Tipperary, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Next on the agenda is the consideration of public petitions. We have three petitions for consideration today. Petition No. 36 of 2022 is titled "Re-open Ennis, Nenagh and St. John’s emergency departments, and is from Ms Noeleen Moran.

This petition is submitted on behalf of the Mid-West Hospital Campaign group and demands the upgrading of the three hospitals to model 3 level, as well as the reopening of the emergency departments. It was before the committee on 13 October 2022. The petitions case manager corresponded with Mr Ray Mitchell, national assistant director, parliamentary affairs division, HSE, on 29 June 2022 and received a reply on 4 August 2022 from Ms Pamela Jensen enclosing a response from University Limerick Hospitals Group, which was then forwarded to the petitioner for information.

The petitioner further corresponded on 12 September 2022 with documentation which has been sent to mid-west public representatives in support of her petition. The secretariat also sent the petition and the correspondence from University Limerick Hospitals Group to the Minister for Health, Deputy Stephen Donnelly, and advised the HSE of same. The Joint Committee on Health was consulted and advised this committee that this topic is not on its work programme. The petitions case manager sought a further update from the HSE on behalf of the petitioner and received a reply from Mr. Ray Mitchell, HSE, and Professor Colette Cowan, chief executive officer of University Limerick Hospitals Group, regarding the petition on 2 March 2023. The committee recommends that the correspondence from Professor Colette Cowan be forwarded to the petitioner for comment within 14 days. Do members have any views?