Results 11,701-11,720 of 26,610 for speaker:David Cullinane

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (27 Jun 2019)

David Cullinane: Would that happen anyway routinely?

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (27 Jun 2019)

David Cullinane: We will see what comes of the audited accounts.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (27 Jun 2019)

David Cullinane: This correspondence raises some interesting questions. I will not go into them all because we have to move on but I have seven questions arising from the individual's documents that I believe would be good questions for the Secretary General. Could I submit those questions to the clerk? Given that other members have not seen them they could be submitted in my name. Perhaps these questions...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (27 Jun 2019)

David Cullinane: That is perfect.

Public Accounts Committee: Health Service Executive Financial Statements 2018
2017 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 38 - Department of Health
Chapter 16 - Control of Private Patient Activity in Acute Public Hospitals (27 Jun 2019)

David Cullinane: I welcome the witnesses, especially Mr. Reid; this is his first appearance before us in his new role. I have listened to what Mr. Reid has said over the past hour in responding to questions from members. To paraphrase what he said about spending, whether current or capital, the HSE gets a pot of money and that money then has to be managed. He and I might have a view on the size of the pot,...

Public Accounts Committee: Health Service Executive Financial Statements 2018
2017 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 38 - Department of Health
Chapter 16 - Control of Private Patient Activity in Acute Public Hospitals (27 Jun 2019)

David Cullinane: Let me just stop Mr. Reid there. If it is not cost containment, is it the position that, if a hospital manager believes that they have to spend more than they have been given to meet demand, they are not obliged to come in on budget? I can give examples in Waterford, where hospital managers have showed me a draft of a document that talks about cost containment. Is cost containment not a...

Public Accounts Committee: Health Service Executive Financial Statements 2018
2017 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 38 - Department of Health
Chapter 16 - Control of Private Patient Activity in Acute Public Hospitals (27 Jun 2019)

David Cullinane: I know that, but they are looking at cost-containment plans on the foot of a letter from Mr. Reid. In Waterford, for example, the cost-containment plan looks at limiting surgical theatre space over a number of months during the summer, where savings can be made in cleaning contracts, agency spend and overtime. There is a whole range of other areas. They are all designed to make sure they...

Public Accounts Committee: Health Service Executive Financial Statements 2018
2017 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 38 - Department of Health
Chapter 16 - Control of Private Patient Activity in Acute Public Hospitals (27 Jun 2019)

David Cullinane: Did Mr. Reid know that some cancer patients were sent home because of issues with theatre capacity? Five patients were affected. I am sure that Mr. Reid is aware that being booked in for some kind of cancer treatment is life-altering. There is a psychological aspect involved in a person building himself or herself up physically and mentally for this type of treatment. The person goes to...

Public Accounts Committee: Health Service Executive Financial Statements 2018
2017 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 38 - Department of Health
Chapter 16 - Control of Private Patient Activity in Acute Public Hospitals (27 Jun 2019)

David Cullinane: That is fine.

Public Accounts Committee: Health Service Executive Financial Statements 2018
2017 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 38 - Department of Health
Chapter 16 - Control of Private Patient Activity in Acute Public Hospitals (27 Jun 2019)

David Cullinane: I might just talk Mr. Reid through this because when we are looking at what is happening the best lens we have is our local hospital. I have no problem whatsoever with Mr. Reid and the HSE ensuring that health spending is contained. That is one of Mr. Reid's and the HSE's core functions and it should be. I have no problem, therefore, with that. I certainly accept that he has come into...

Public Accounts Committee: Health Service Executive Financial Statements 2018
2017 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 38 - Department of Health
Chapter 16 - Control of Private Patient Activity in Acute Public Hospitals (27 Jun 2019)

David Cullinane: There also has to be an examination of where the money goes. I always look at things logically. There will be different situations in different hospitals. They will all have different needs, different geography, different capacity and different levels of expertise in different specialties. They all have their unique characteristics. One thing that we can logically do regarding waiting...

Public Accounts Committee: Health Service Executive Financial Statements 2018
2017 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 38 - Department of Health
Chapter 16 - Control of Private Patient Activity in Acute Public Hospitals (27 Jun 2019)

David Cullinane: I accept that. My specific question, however, was on capital projects and the perception that they can take a lifetime from conception to delivery. It is almost like turning a big oil tanker around. There is a long wait for people to see delivery. We table parliamentary questions and the responses refer to a capital project being in a queue and that there is a business case at this stage...

Public Accounts Committee: Health Service Executive Financial Statements 2018
2017 Annual Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General and Appropriation Accounts
Vote 38 - Department of Health
Chapter 16 - Control of Private Patient Activity in Acute Public Hospitals (27 Jun 2019)

David Cullinane: -----is what is the process? Why does it take so long at times to get from an idea to delivery? Is the first step a business case? If the witnesses do not have time to set it out here maybe they can send a note to the committee on what the stages are in capital applications. We had better understand it. A business case is developed by hospital management in conjunction with the group and...

Post-European Council: Statements (26 Jun 2019)

David Cullinane: In the absence of any real development on Brexit, the big news emanating from the European Council last week was the regrettable failure of Heads of Government to find unanimous support in working towards a target of net zero carbon emissions across the European Union by 2050. That is very worrying. While the House might disagree on how Ireland will achieve net zero carbon emissions by...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed): Departmental Administrative Arrangements (26 Jun 2019)

David Cullinane: Committee Stage of the Adoption (Information and Tracing) Bill 2016 has been deferred and I want to raise a number of concerns relating to the Government's treatment of adopted people in the context of the Bill. Last week, the Minister, Deputy Zappone, told Senators that she met advocacy groups, lawyers and social workers only the night before to listen to their views on controversial...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed): Commissions of Investigation (26 Jun 2019)

David Cullinane: This is a challenge for us all. A balance must be struck between establishing the facts, which is why the commission was established in the first place, and the commission doing its work in a timely and cost effective fashion. The Taoiseach has brought representatives of all parties and groupings together on several occasions to seek advice, which was the right thing to do. Advice was...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed): Programme for Government (26 Jun 2019)

David Cullinane: A Programme for a Partnership Government makes many promises and some of those have simply not been fulfilled. One of those promises is to reduce waiting times for a range of healthcare treatments in specialties right across the board and across regions. The Taoiseach stated earlier that everybody is benefitting from the recovery, or at least that everybody should benefit from the recovery,...

Ceisteanna ar Reachtaíocht a Gealladh - Questions on Promised Legislation (26 Jun 2019)

David Cullinane: Today the Minister for Health will hold briefings on the roll-out of the compassionate access programme for those who need cannabis-based oil for medical and clinical purposes. I commend Deputy Gino Kenny and many others who campaigned for this, as well as the Minister for Health who took the issue on board and progressed it. Several weeks ago in the Chamber Deputy Gino Kenny raised the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: National Oral Health Policy: Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2019)

David Cullinane: I thank the Chairman for his indulgence. I am not a member of the committee but I have a number of questions that I wanted to ask. What is the referral pathway for somebody to be referred to a public orthodontist?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: National Oral Health Policy: Discussion (Resumed) (26 Jun 2019)

David Cullinane: I imagine that if somebody is referred to an orthodontist, it is for a good reason. Even if it is for a routine treatment, it needs to be done. Dr. Dougall spoke earlier about nudging people to make sure that they are treated as quickly as possible. Dr. Kavanagh spoke in a similar vein. If a person is referred to an orthodontist, how quickly should that person be assessed, inspected,...