James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The definition of the unborn is from the Attorney General, and it is for the purposes of this Act alone. Deputies Boyd Barrett and Daly raised that issue.

I accept that everybody has a conscience and strongly held views and beliefs, but I believe the Bill gives clarity to women on their legal entitlements and how to access them, and to doctors and nurses who must deliver that service.

I agree with Deputy Ó Cuív that we have one of the safest maternity services in the world, but it can always be improved and there is no question about that. We know that to err is human, so the challenge for us is to create good systems that protect patients against those human errors. We have done much of that. Even before the report was completed, things had changed at University College Hospital, Galway. HIQA will bring us a new report in the next few weeks which will have wider implications for our service.

Two new things will be done this year that have never been done before. There will be a national early warning system under which clinicians, nurses and doctors will assess patients in respect of their clinical well-being and determine whether they are deteriorating. This will be done in the same way whether they are in Letterkenny or Cork, Dublin or Galway. We now have a maternity early warning score as well, because the parameters are slightly different.

I thank Deputy Ó Caoláin for his statement of support.

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