Jerry Buttimer (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, and compliment her on the work she is doing to reform the mental health system and the area of disabilities. The Government is fixing the health service. It is extraordinary and a bit of a groundhog day when one reads the motion from the Members opposite. When Deputy Martin was Minister for Health, they ran out of Government and out of the Department. We should contrast his tenure in the Department of Health with what is happening today. The Government is fixing our health system despite enormous financial constraints.

We have had wide-ranging reform, including free GP care for older and younger people, and have delivered on a commitment to universal health care. In addition, we are moving chronic disease management of asthma and diabetes into a primary care setting. We are also working to improve patient safety while easing hospital overcrowding and reducing waiting times for public patients. Deputy McEntee referred to early discharges and delays being reduced in the fair deal nursing home support scheme. This is being done at a time when the population is increasing and ageing. We must press ahead with reforms and plan for the future, including a growing number of elderly in the population. The motion before us offers no roadmap in terms of a Fianna Fáil health strategy other than saying it will oppose the Government.

We are committed to delivering the new national children's hospital. In Cork city, we have seen the new mental health unit opened this year. For many decades, mental health was the Cinderella of the health service but it is now being given the opportunity to take centre stage in a new unit in Cork University Hospital. We must examine how we can deliver better governance and the hospital group will provide us with that opportunity. We need to bring about improvements in emergency response times in hospitals, but to that end we require a societal and attitudinal shift. In many cases, our first port of call is the accident and emergency department when it should not be.

People have a simple approach to the Fianna Fáil mantra on health. The former Minister for Health, Deputy Martin, commissioned 191 reports at a cost of €16 million to the Exchequer. He promised a lot but delivered very little, which illustrates the base they are coming from. Our health budget has been restored and more staff are being recruited. We have a journey to go in terms of how we can deliver real and tangible reform to reduce accident and emergency waiting lists. We must try to bring about better outcomes for patients, with patient safety being at the very heart of what we do.

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