Michael Harty (Clare, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The strength of the reform programme is that it challenges everybody to engage in cultural change. It challenges the Government, the Department of Health, the HSE, doctors, nurses, hospital and clinical management. It demands a lot from people, but it also promises fairness and equality. We must have a health service of which we are proud and people will not be afraid. It will not be cheap, but doing nothing will prove much more costly. The Sláintecare reform programme plans to respect the patient and staff in equal measure and will reward those in the public service fairly for their hard work. Spending money on an inefficient system gives very poor value for money.

We must spend money on transforming our service into a new, coherent and patient-responsive one. Can the Government commit to this reform programme and what is its response to it? The country is waiting for the Government's response, and the Government will be judged on how it acts in transforming the health service.

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