Michael Harty (Clare, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The reality in this motion is that HSE management structures are not fit for purpose because they cannot deliver a timely service. That is the issue which underpins Sláintecare, about which many Deputies have spoken this afternoon. HSE management structures are not fit for purpose. Sláintecare underpins that and offers solutions to that. In addition, the Department of Health is not fit for purpose because it cannot develop policies to modernise our outdated health service. This is a huge issue. The HSE is unable to deliver. The Department of Health is unable to develop policies that will deliver a modern service. I was very disappointed with the Minister's delusional comment that the situation in respect of waiting lists is getting better. It is getting worse as each month goes by. He said that health reform is a key policy of the Government, but those were empty words because there is no evidence that the Government is developing any key policy that will help the health service. There is a lack of vision, ambition and curiosity about why we are in the situation we are in. The Sláintecare report is one of the most abused reports in this Dáil. The report sets out a ten-year vision, but the Government does not have any vision. The Government claims that Sláintecare is one of its central policy planks, but it has done nothing to implement it. No Sláintecare recommendation of any significance has been implemented. It is important for patient testimony to be heard. The Minister spoke in abstract terms about the hundreds of thousands of people who are on waiting lists and the percentages that are increasing and decreasing, but his remarks did not encompass the individual person who is suffering. I am aware of a patient who was diagnosed with bowel cancer four months ago. It is absolutely scandalous that this person is still waiting for surgery even though the actual diagnosis was made four months ago.

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