Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)

In 2007, overall spending by the HSE on palliative care services amounted to €75 million. That includes some, but not all, of the additional €18 million funding that was provided by the Government in budgets 2006 and 2007. The HSE has advised me that some of the remaining funding was used in other parts of its services, particularly in acute hospitals. Clearly, the HSE has to operate within the resources made available to it in any given year. However, that should not mean that new funding provided by the Government for specific service enhancements is redirected to other purposes. Accordingly, we need to focus on improving the management of existing services and associated funding. In particular, making better use of existing capacity within acute hospitals and managing hospital activity on a planned basis would deliver better hospital services and, at the same time, allow primary and community services to be improved in line with the Government's plans.

My primary concern in regard to palliative care services at this stage is to remove existing regional disparities and enhance palliative care services throughout the country. The HSE is currently finalising a plan for the development of palliative care services on a national basis. That is being done in consultation with the Irish Association for Palliative Care, the Irish Hospice Foundation and the Irish Cancer Society. I have asked the HSE to ensure that the implementation of this plan is prioritised within its overall resources and its service planning process.

See this speech in context