Pádraig O'Sullivan (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I start with a little bit of positivity, which has been bereft in this building for two years. I have listened to the contributions of Members opposite. There is reason to be optimistic. I would like to cite the words of Dr. Tony Holohan at a meeting of the Joint Committee on Health this morning. He said:

The number of confirmed cases in hospital has decreased, with the average number of newly confirmed cases in hospital each day also reducing. The total numbers of confirmed cases in ICU, daily admissions, and cases requiring mechanical ventilation have decreased. The number of COVID-19 patients in receipt of advanced respiratory support in hospital settings outside of ICU has also reduced.

We all know that this has been a collective effort. To be fair, everybody who has spoken thus far has acknowledged the great work of our front-line healthcare workers. We owe it to them to do that. So too we must acknowledge the compliance of the vast majority of people in terms of ensuring we got to where we are today. There is a note of optimism in the air. We should acknowledge that. Members opposite will call for public inquiries. I add my voice to that call, particularly in regard to Carechoice Nursing Home, Ballynoe, Cork, where there were a number of deaths. I believe that merits investigation. I am sure other Deputies will cite various other nursing homes across the country in that regard. It is important to stress, as Members opposite have done, that this cannot be about finger pointing or blame games. We want to get to the root cause of what happened in these institutions and what we can do going forward to ensure it never happens again if we find ourselves in this situation.

At this morning's meeting of the Joint Committee on Health the Chief Medical Officer also said, "The evidence in relation to Omicron, as well as our experience of it, indicate that the burden of severe health outcomes appears reduced compared to previous waves of infection." If that is the case, it is very encouraging. It shows the different strains of the virus are waning in terms of strength. If we have data on that, I would like to see it published. I would also like to know what the plans are in regard to long-Covid. Other countries across the Continent have established different units in medical settings, which will analyse and care for people who are suffering the ill effects of long-Covid now and into the future. God knows how long those people will suffer from the ill effects of Covid.

The issue of remote working was mentioned. The benefits of remote working may be lost. The Government is planning to introduce legislation in that regard. All of us can agree that in various settings remote working has been predominantly positive. We cannot lose the benefits of that. The Government needs to work with the unions and employers to encourage remote working where possible. It is something that we cannot afford to lose.

On disability services, in my area in Cork we are told that services are operating at 75% to 80%. They still have not fully resumed and that is being felt on the ground. A variety of posts remain unfilled. Organisations such as Cope Foundation and the Brothers of Charity, Cork, are struggling to hire staff. We need to double down and put great emphasis on getting staffing levels right again. Many of the people we are talking about have some of the most complex physical, mental and health needs. It is ironic that we are talking about the benefits of remote working and how people suffered in terms of having to commute two to three hours per day to and from work while at the same time we still have not had a debate on disability services and people going to ASD services in schools often for two or three hours a day, five days a week. I would welcome a debate on the adverse mental impact that is having on those people.

Undoubtedly, the pandemic has caught us all off guard and lessons have to be learned. I would like us to have a serious debate on preparations for the next event. I am not sure when that event might be and the hope is we will never have this experience, at least not in our lifetime. We need to build for the future and to have that open and honest debate.

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