Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)

The Health Act 2004 provided for the Health Service Executive which was established on 1 January 2005. Under the Act, the executive has the responsibility to manage and deliver, or arrange to be delivered on its behalf, health and personal social services. This includes the provision of neurological services.

In April 2003, Comhairle na nOspidéal published the report of a review of neurology and neurophysiology services. The report recommended significant enhancement of such services, including increases in consultant staffing. It also recognised that aspects of other specialties and services, such as rehabilitation medicine, geriatric medicine and old age psychiatry, are related to and overlap with neurology services. The comhairle recommended that a national multidisciplinary review of rehabilitation services be undertaken. This would further inform the policy framework on the development of neurology services.

Consistent with this recommendation a draft national action plan for rehabilitation services is under consideration in my Department. The comhairle report and the work undertaken by the Neurological Alliance of Ireland through its publications, together with the rehabilitation action plan, will offer a comprehensive policy framework for the future.

Additional revenue funding has been made available in 2005 to support the development of neurology-neurophysiology services in a number of regions having regard to agreed priorities. The continuing development of the services is a matter for the HSE, having regard to available funding and other competing service priorities.

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