Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Independent)

I move amendment No. 1:

To delete all words after "That Dáil Éireann," and substitute the following:

"in the context of the current economic challenges facing the country and the need for all regions in the Health Service Executive to operate efficiently within their 2010 budget provision:

— notes the huge improvements in recent years in the health of the Irish population, including the increase in life expectancy to 76.8 years for males and 81.6 years for females, increased survival rates for conditions such as breast and prostate cancer and reduced mortality from cardiovascular diseases, including strokes;

— notes the decrease in hospital infection rates of over 40% between 2006 and 2009;

— recognises that Ireland has one of the lowest infant mortality rates in the world;

— welcomes the endorsement from the European Union on being ranked second in Europe in quality palliative care;

— notes the very real progress in cancer screening and the fact that 122,000 women were given free breast cancer screening and 285,000 women had free cervical cancer screening last year;

— welcomes the fact that the HSE will deliver fully on the key areas of activity promised in its service plan for 2010, including 540,000 inpatient treatments, 689,000 day cases and 3.4 million outpatient attendances, 1.1 million emergency department attendances, over 9,500 home care packages and home help to 54,500 people;

— notes that the number of patients treated is a better indicator of the level of service provided than the number of beds available;

— welcomes the very positive impact of the fair deal scheme on the affordability of nursing home care for the 15,500 people who have applied for it and its positive impact on the problem of delayed discharges which has decreased by 30% since last year;

— welcomes the fact that data indicate that a significant majority of patients attending emergency departments are treated and discharged or admitted within the maximum waiting target of six hours;

— recognises that in these challenging times, the opportunity through the Croke Park agreement of introducing modern work practices, flexibility and deployment maximises the care available to patients;

— rejects misleading claims about the cancellation of operations which take no account of normal postponements for clinical reasons and the fact that hospitals arrange to reschedule patients' admissions for the earliest possible date;

— welcomes the appointment of national clinical leaders in many medical specialties such as neurology, diabetes and stroke, who will determine how best to provide services which will give patients the best chance of a good outcome;

— rejects inaccurate claims about inpatient waiting lists and welcomes the fact that the average waiting time for elective treatment is now just 2.6 months, down from between two and five years in 2002; and

— pledges its continuing support to the Government in its work to provide a safe, fair and cost effective service for all."

I wish to share time with the Minister of State, Deputy Áine Brady, and Deputies Cregan and Dooley.

See this speech in context