Brian Lenihan Jnr (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)

There are clearly relevant stakeholders who will be consulted on the whole issue of the determination of the range of services, and the location of the associated urgent care centres.

To date, no decision has been taken on the range of services to be provided at the National Children's Hospital at Tallaght in the context of the development of the national paediatric hospital and the associated urgent care centres. I understand the transition group is currently in the process of contracting external assistance on the preparation of the high level framework brief for the new hospital, which will include recommendations on the number and functional content of the urgent care centres required to support the new hospital. The strategy, Primary Care: A New Direction, aims to develop services in the community to give people direct access to integrated multidisciplinary teams of general practitioners, nurses, health care assistants, home helps, occupational therapists and others.

It has been estimated that up to 95% of people's health and social services needs can be properly met within a primary care setting and the establishment of the new primary care teams can contribute greatly to enhancing community-based health services in these areas.

The HSE received additional revenue funding of €16 million in 2006 to support further implementation of the strategy. This represents a significant increase over previous years and brings the total ongoing funding to €28 million per annum.

Out of the €16 million provided, €10 million has been earmarked to establish up to 100 primary care teams, composed of 300 additional front line professionals. Altogether, this will ensure integrated, accessible services for the populations served by these teams. The funding is being targeted by the HSE to provide the potential for each local health office, formerly community care areas, to establish up to three primary care teams. The HSE is currently in the process of finalising arrangements for the establishment of the primary care teams in 2006. Further funding of €10 million is being provided in 2007 to enable the full year cost of these developments to be met.

Out-of-hours co-operatives allow general practitioners to put in place arrangements to provide services to their patients while their surgeries are closed in the evenings, on weekends and bank holidays. The development of GP co-operatives is in line with the overall health service policy of strengthening primary care services and ensuring that to the greatest extent possible, the needs are met in the primary care setting.

Co-operative arrangements involving approximately 250 general practitioners are already in place, serving a substantial proportion of the population on the south side of Dublin. I understand that work is under way on the development of a specific GP out-of-hours service for the Tallaght and Clondalkin areas. The HSE will also consider what other developments may be required to ensure people living across south Dublin have access to appropriate GP out-of-hours services, seven days a week.

I appreciate that both Deputies are most anxious to raise the question of the future of what is colloquially described as Tallaght Hospital. I know this because Deputy O'Connor has raised this question with me on numerous occasions and Deputy Crowe raised the question in the House this evening. I focused in my reply on the obligation of Deputies in respect of matters of patient safety. I should have been more precise and refined. I am actually talking about patient outcomes, not patient safety. Safety and the treatment of patients in Tallaght are of a very high standard but there is a question about how we achieve the best outcomes for our children in terms of the configuration of the hospital system in Dublin. This was the subject of the report. It is clear from the reply I have made on behalf of the Minister that she is willing to engage with all relevant stakeholders including the National Children's Hospital at Tallaght in that context.

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