Billy Kelleher (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I move:

“That Dáil Éireann:

extends its deepest sympathies to the parents and families of babies that died at the Midland Regional Hospital, Portlaoise;

deplores the manner in which they were treated by the Health Service Executive (HSE) in the aftermath of their loss;

notes:— the publication of the recent Report of the investigation into the safety, quality and standards of services provided by the Health Service Executive to patients in the Midland Regional Hospital, Portlaoise by the Health Information and Quality Authority, HIQA; and

— the findings in the Report which point to consistent failures by the HSE at a national, regional and local level to decisively address numerous clinical governance and management issues;acknowledges that the Government agreed and confirmed that the Midland Regional Hospital, Portlaoise be a model-3 hospital in 2011;

condemns:— the withholding and concealment of information from parents and patients; and

— the decisions by the Minister for Health and the Department of Health not to allocate funding allowing the Midland Regional Hospital, Portlaoise to be funded as a model-3 hospital;further notes the HIQA finding that services at the Midland Regional Hospital, Portlaoise were neither governed, resourced nor equipped to provide the level of care expected of a model-3 hospital; and

calls for:— patient safety to be put first and for the Midland Regional Hospital, Portlaoise to be resourced in a manner commensurate with its status as a model-3 hospital;

— further improvements in the governance structure of the hospital to ensure patient safety in all areas of the hospital; and

— the recommendations of the HIQA report to be immediately implemented to ensure that risks and deficiencies identified are addressed at both local and national level to ensure the delivery of safe and consistent patient care.”

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