Derek Keating (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this very important legislation, the purpose of which is to amend the 2005 Act. Although the Bill seeks to take account of the provisions of the 2005 EU directive relating to the recognition of professional qualifications and the assessment and recognition of qualifications obtained outside of the State, I wish to focus my contribution on what is happening in Ireland at present.

For far too long we have had many problems with standards of service provision in our health service. We need a recognised regulation to ensure a minimum standard of service provision for patients, who are the most important people in our health service. The Bill provides for each profession to have its own structures to deal with standards of service provision, standards in professional practice and complaints about service provision. It also provides for a registration board for each designated profession.

Today in Ireland, anyone can put a brass plate over his or her door, proclaim himself or herself a physiotherapist, psychotherapist, care worker, social worker, and so forth, and pluck his or her fees out of the air. That is simply not good enough anymore. Sadly, this week, we saw a medical doctor brought before his peers on the fitness to practice committee to address a charge of poor performance. I use this as an example of what we need to see in other professions.

Over the years and through my involvement in the community as a youth worker and previous to that as a sports and fitness instructor, I have had to refer people for professional help because of depression, self-harm and the threat of suicide. I have often been concerned about the standard of service being provided by the professionals who do not provide a good service and who sometimes hide behind those famous expressions: "I don't discuss individual cases", or "My relationship is a professional matter." Confidentiality is the cornerstone of all professional services provided. However, the reality is that there are many self-appointed professionals who do not have registration and in whose case there is an absence either of qualification or of sufficient qualifications.

I welcome the Department of Health and Children's decision to work closely with the various councils it is establishing. These councils will also contribute to the educational system in respect of the training authorities and postgraduate courses that many professionals are to undertake. Continuous professional development, CPD, is a very important component of professional practice. However, it is not enough to be qualified. The need for continuing upskilling or training is also vital. One of the benefits of having a registration board is that, in my experience and that of many of my colleagues with whom I have discussed this matter, professional accountability is often lacking in some areas of the medical profession. It is probably an aspect of human nature but the reality is that people sometimes become institutionalised. They get into a routine or sometimes rush to make decisions, diagnoses, care plans or therapies without fully validating them with other colleagues or examining new developments or treatment plans and without consulting the person receiving the service. We are all capable of becoming stale in our practice. However, when one is providing services to young people, including those with learning disabilities, or to dependent elderly people, the terminally ill or people with an addiction or physical problem, every profession is required to give the highest standard of service but in a manner and with an attitude that contributes towards respect, the dignity of the person, the right to self-determination and even the right to stay the way he or she is if he or she so chooses.

The 2005 Act provided for the establishment of statutory registration. This Bill improves on the current legislation and empowers the Minister to appoint professionals to the boards of their professions and to establish a standard that is expected from their peers. The new legislation will also allow the Minister to update fines for offences under the Act and I also welcome this part of the legislation.

We hear a lot about corporate governance in the media, even in the case of charitable organisations. Standards of practice and accountability, including regular accounting to boards and committees, are important in modern Ireland. What I hope comes from this new legislation is that each professional will not only be accountable for his or her actions but will also be responsible for his or her professional opinions and interventions. Indeed, we will, once and for all, continue to improve the services that are so necessary to help the vulnerable people who very often have only two choices - to take it or leave it. This legislation gets rid of that attitude and puts in place not only a legal obligation on professionals to be accountable but also an invitation to and obligation on professionals to take responsibility for their members. It also protects professionals from managers who demand shortcuts. The best regulator for any profession is a professional who knows that service.

I revert to the point I made previously when I said it is almost impossible to regulate attitudes but, thankfully, we are very fortunate because we have a culture of care and a commitment to excellence. As has been stated before, the majority of professionals, who I would group under the umbrella title of allied health professionals, are hard-working and conscientious and committed to standards and the needs of their clients, and that is what they expect of them.

My opening remark was that this Bill is necessary to improve the 2005 Act. I wish to place on the record of the House my gratitude for the many thousands of professionals working in the health service who will never be rewarded in monetary terms for their kind and professional commitment, caring and gentleness. I have experienced it myself and I am sure many other people have experienced it as well when family members are in the care of professionals. That gentleness and recognition for each person in his or her own right are so important in addition to the professional treatment. Today, those working in front-line services will benefit from this legislation. I welcome this legislation because of those who cut corners or occasionally act unprofessionally or who are hard task masters. I welcome the Minister's commitment not only to introduce a new, smarter, more efficient health system but his encouragement and support for the majority of kind, gentle workers who go beyond their contract and give of themselves daily. It is for these reasons I support this Bill.

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