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

With respect, what is truly important is to ensure patients have this excellent service available to them in Cork. Last week I was in Beaumont Hospital at the opening of its new unit where I met the staff there and some of the patients. It is a state of the art unit with the latest technological equipment available and the staff will now be able to diagnose with much greater accuracy the forms of epilepsy people have and will therefore be able to treat with much greater effect these conditions. As a professional who dealt with many people who have this condition I can tell the Deputy one drug after another was tried in the hope that one might work. Now we have a much more scientific way of addressing these issues and seeing whether stereotactic surgery would alleviate problems completely.

I met a gentleman there who is related to a Member of the House who was very happy to tell us his life has been transformed in the past two years. He is now epilepsy free and can go where he wishes and does not need to plan the day around his condition. It is like a new lease of life for him. I thank all of the doctors and nurses working in the units and the lead, Dr. Colin Doherty, who does outstanding work on our behalf in this regard. The delays are not something on which I have intimate knowledge but I know some issues arose with regard to staffing which have been resolved and we look forward to the unit opening in Cork and delivering care there.

See this speech in context