Richard O'Donoghue (Limerick County, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Acting Chairman and welcome the people in the Gallery.

Public protection can only happen when correct standards and education are put in place. I understand the main purpose of this Bill is to apply statutory regulation to 18 health groups so as to protect the public.

The Bill will provide a structure for the assessment and approval of training courses, examinations and qualifications which will put in place a proper development of education and training for certain health professions. At present, only five professions are subject to statutory registration: doctors, nurses, pharmacists, opticians and dentists.

The new legislation will provide for statutory registration of 18 other health professional groups. This will strengthen the existing legislation regarding registration of certain professions such as doctors, nurses and pharmacists. In addition, new legislation will be introduced for the registration of health and social care professions, including physiotherapists, occupational therapists, social workers and child workers.

Ultimately, the public can be confident that the professional treating them is qualified and competent. When all the registration boards are in place, it will be responsible for the regulation of approximately 25,000 professionals.

I welcome anything that we can do for training for professionals in the health professions as long as it coincides with accountability, which it will, for all the health professionals. We have seen incidents within healthcare, from minor to major. The people who did not register those incidents were not made accountable. Legal funding was put in place to protect the people who did not report these incidents, as well as for the confidential agreements that were put in place to protect those people, but not to protect the people to whom the incidents happened. I welcome anything that will regulate and bring accountability to people in the health sector and all sectors as long as the protections are put in place for the betterment and the future.

On numerous occasions I have brought up heavy-heartedly the situation in University Hospital Limerick, UHL. For many years, it has been a problem. I had a meeting again during the week. The people I met told me that the next time, they want to meet me with their legal representatives. I will not be frightened by that. I am here to protect the people. I am here to protect the staff and the doctors, etc., in the hospital. We also need to make sure the management system is protected. I hope that the Bill goes some of the way towards doing that. I hope there will be accountability within the health sector that gives confidence to carers, workers, doctors and nurses and ensures they are not afraid of a management structure that is there to try to stop them from doing their job and improving the system.

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