Liam Twomey (Wexford, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I would like to discuss with the Minister for Health the establishment of a patient safety authority in the Irish health service. I call on him to bring forward legislation to establish a robust patient safety authority that will inspire confidence in patients that their concerns will be properly addressed; to ensure that the structures and governance of such an organisation are properly resourced so that complaints are dealt with in a timely manner; and that the patient safety authority can enforce the changes needed in our health service to protect patients.

I call on the Minister to ensure the establishment of a comprehensive patient safety authority in this country, one that has real power and teeth in representing patients. I would like to see established a patient safety authority powerful enough to oversee the Irish Medical Council, the Health and Social Professionals Council, the nursing organisations, the Health Information and Quality Authority, HIQA, and the Irish Mental Health Commission. Currently, outside of the Department of Health there is no patient-focused organisation to represent patients in terms of their needs and complaints. This is not good governance. There is a need for a strong, robust organisation, outside of the Department of Health. The Health Service Executive is to be abolished. We need an organisation which patients can have confidence will protect them and for whom their interests are the primary focus.

The Irish Mental Health Commission has been in place for more than ten years and there is a policy document driving change in the mental health services, namely, A Vision for Change, yet in the health supplement of today's The Irish Times it is stated that patients still do not have individual care plans. Those working in the health service will know that the Irish Mental Health Commission has given increased autonomy and power to patients suffering mental health problems. While their rights within the health service have improved dramatically, there are weaknesses in the system.

In terms of the many weaknesses that have arisen time and again within our health services, which fell to the Minister to deal with, there is a need for a one-stop-shop, such as an ombudsman to whom patients can go to have their issues dealt with. I call on the Minister to ensure a robust and well resourced patient safety authority is put in place to protect patients. I do not think it is right that the Department of Health should be investigating itself when issues arise. The response to the Portlaoise crisis was rapid and good but to instil confidence in patients we need a separate, strong and powerful organisation.

When it comes to enforcing standards in our nursing homes and hospitals, HIQA does its job well. However, its remit is not the same as would be the remit of a robust patient safety authority. There has been a patient safety authority in the UK for more than a decade now. When this issue was raised years ago with former Minister, Mary Harney, the best she could come up with was the establishment of a commission to look into the matter. We have gone past that point. What we need now is a strong organisation in this area.

The Minister plans to introduce universal health insurance in this country and to reform how our health services operate. For this to work and to ensure that standards do not slip again, we need a robust patient safety authority. I ask that the Minister respond to my proposal.

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