Marcella Corcoran Kennedy (Offaly, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy Stanley for bringing this important matter to the attention of the Minister for Health, who sends his sincere apologies that he cannot be here and has asked me to respond on his behalf. This is a good opportunity to update the Deputy and the House on the future of services at the Midland Regional Hospital in Portlaoise. I acknowledge the presence in the Gallery of the people from the constituency to whom Deputy Stanley referred. Sadly, the constituency is no longer part of my constituency but I suppose what I have lost, others have gained and vice versa. The situation might revert at some point.

I assure the Deputy that the Minister, Deputy Harris, is committed to securing and further developing the role of Portlaoise hospital as a constituent hospital within the Dublin Midlands hospital group. The most important issue in relation to any changes at Portlaoise hospital is that patient safety and outcomes must come first.

As the Deputy acknowledged in his contribution, there have been a number of reports on the Midland Regional Hospital, Portlaoise in recent years. The reports have pointed to the need for reconfiguration of some services to ensure that patients are treated in the most appropriate setting by specialist staff that can safely meet their needs. Since 2014, the focus has been on supporting the hospital to develop and enhance management capability, implementing changes required to address clinical service deficiencies, and incorporating the hospital into the governance structures within the Dublin Midlands hospital group. Significant work has been undertaken to strengthen and stabilise current arrangements for services at the hospital to ensure they are safety-assured and adequately resourced. Governance and management arrangements in Portlaoise hospital have been strengthened, additional clinical staff have been appointed, and staff training and communications have improved.

The Dublin Midlands hospital group recently produced a draft plan which sets out a proposed service design for a new model of clinical service delivery at Portlaoise hospital. The draft plan has been discussed with the Department of Health and is currently the subject of further work and consideration within the HSE in advance of further necessary consultations with stakeholders, including GPs and consultants. No decisions have been made in respect of Portlaoise hospital but any changes, once approved, will be undertaken in a planned and orderly manner and will take account of current use of services, demands in other hospitals, and the need to develop particular services at Portlaoise in the context of overall service reconfiguration in the Dublin Midlands hospital group.

I again assure the House and Deputy Stanley that this work is being done to strengthen services at Portlaoise from a patient safety and quality point of view. I am confident that the changes will improve services for patients at Portlaoise hospital. Patients are at the centre of everything we do in the Department of Health and within the Health Service Executive. Their needs must be prioritised, which is exactly the standpoint from which we are coming.

See this speech in context