Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am strongly of the view that any new patient advocacy service should be set up independent of the HSE from the outset. For this reason I removed reference to the establishment of an interim patient advocacy agency from the service plan for 2015.

My view has been supported by the recent recommendation made in the HIQA investigation report on services at Portlaoise hospital on the need to establish an independent patient advocacy service. The HIQA recommendation is that an independent patient advocacy service should be in place by May 2016. I fully agree with the recommendation and intend to see it implemented well in advance of the timeline provided by HIQA.

The scope, role and functions of the independent advocacy service will be considered along with the appropriate structural, governance and funding arrangements that need to be put in place. My Department will be consulting widely on the best way to get the service up and running in the shortest possible timeframe.

The role of the independent patient advocacy service will be to support and advocate for patients in their dealings with the health service. Regrettably, the health service has not been as responsive to patients who have had bad experiences as is required. I believe the patient advocacy service can assist in redressing the balance in the relationship between patients and service providers.

The proposed establishment of a number of new statutory bodies is something that I have given consideration to in the context of the immediate priorities associated with the overall health reform programme. I believe there are some functions associated with the patient safety agency that are currently carried out to an independent high standard already by HIQA. I do not propose at this stage to interfere with these arrangements and instead intend to address the major gap in advocacy and support to patients through the new independent service.

I also intend to improve the advice available to me on patient safety through the enhancement of my own Department's patient safety function under the leadership of the chief medical officer.

This will allow such advice to be incorporated within the existing accountability arrangements between the Minister for Health and the HSE, HIQA and other regulators and health bodies.

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