Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)

The health sector is one of the most complex areas of activity in every country and it must by its very nature command the confidence of those who use it. While I am confident that the majority of patients in Ireland receive effective and safe treatment, unfortunately, errors do occur in any health service and it is important that we have systems in place to detect and respond appropriately to them. Patient safety is everyone's concern and needs to drive all our decisions.

Patient safety has always been high on my agenda and that of the Government, as is evident from various initiatives we have taken in recent years. The Health Information and Quality Authority, HIQA, was established in 2007. One of the main functions of the authority is to set standards and monitor health care quality. The authority also has the power to undertake investigations as to the safety, quality and standards of services where it is believed that there is serious risk to the health or welfare of a person receiving services. Recent developments have led to the authority carrying out a number of investigations and it is acknowledged that there is public confidence in the work of the authority.

In addition, and as part of my commitment to prioritise the patient safety and quality agenda, I set up the Commission on Patient Safety and Quality Assurance. The commission's report, Building a Culture of Patient Safety, was published on 7 August 2008. The report contains proposals on patient advocacy and suggests appropriate arrangements for the involvement of patients and carers in service planning and evaluation. I am currently considering those recommendations in detail with a view to bringing an implementation plan to Government shortly.

The overall approach to implementation endorsed by the commission is to avoid short-term structural changes and, instead, to build on the structures already in place. The commission considered that this was the best way to deliver results quickly. On that basis, I am not proposing the establishment of a separate patient safety authority or ombudsman.

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