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

There is a report being compiled by the Chief Medical Officer. He and I met three of the families concerned. Like the Deputy, I reiterate my sympathies on their losses and I apologise for the way they were treated subsequent to their losses. I am committed to a transparent and accountable health service and a patient safety agency that will be set up in the next quarter so that patients have an advocate they can go to and so that what happened in Portlaoise can never happen again. If someone has a complaint and it is not being dealt with expeditiously by the people concerned, the person can go to the patient safety agency to receive help, advice, support and encouragement to pursue the issue to its natural conclusion. I assure the House, the Deputy, the families concerned and the broader public that we will get to the bottom of this and that we will find out where are the issues and problems and that we will fix them. Unlike before, we will not use the report to downgrade and undermine the hospital further but rather to support it to deliver services that the great people who work there, in many instances, are striving to deliver.

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