Results 2,061-2,080 of 3,871 for speaker:Catherine Byrne

Written Answers — Department of Health: Drug Rehabilitation Clinics (5 Jul 2016)

Catherine Byrne: As this is a service matter, it has been referred to the Health Service Executive for attention and direct reply to the Deputy. If the Deputy has not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days he should contact my Private Office and they will follow up the matter with them.

Written Answers — Department of Health: General Practitioner Data (5 Jul 2016)

Catherine Byrne: As this is a service matter, it has been referred to the Health Service Executive for attention and direct reply to the Deputy. If the Deputy has not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days he should contact my Private Office and they will follow up the matter with them.

Written Answers — Department of Health: HSE Staff Training (5 Jul 2016)

Catherine Byrne: In line with action 47 of the National Drugs Strategy, a core objective of the HSE National Addiction Training Programme (NATP) is the development of national training standards for those involved in the provision of substance misuse services. The specific aims of the programme include the provision of training based on current evidence-based practice, prioritising training programmes to...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Drug and Alcohol Task Forces (5 Jul 2016)

Catherine Byrne: In line with the National Drugs Strategy, my Department administers a Drugs Initiative which primarily funds community based drugs initiatives supported by Local and Regional Drug and Alcohol Task Forces. The budget allocation for the ten Regional Drug and Alcohol Task Forces and the fourteen Local Drug and Alcohol Task Forces for each of the years referred to by the Deputy is set out in the...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Drug and Alcohol Task Forces (5 Jul 2016)

Catherine Byrne: I propose to take Questions Nos. 472 to 474, inclusive, together. As this is a service matter, it has been referred to the Health Service Executive for attention and direct reply to the Deputy. If the Deputy has not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days he should contact my Private Office and they will follow up the matter with them.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Drug and Alcohol Task Forces (5 Jul 2016)

Catherine Byrne: As this is a service matter, it has been referred to the Health Service Executive for attention and direct reply to the Deputy. If the Deputy has not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days he should contact my Private Office and they will follow up the matter with them.

Written Answers — Department of Health: National Drugs Strategy (5 Jul 2016)

Catherine Byrne: Government policy on tackling the drug problem is set out in the National Drugs Strategy 2009-2016. A Steering Committee, chaired by an independent chair and with representatives from the Statutory, Community and Voluntary Sectors, has been established to advise on the development of a new National Drugs Strategy, which will cover the period from 2017 onwards. The terms of reference of...

Topical Issue Debate: Accident and Emergency Departments (6 Jul 2016)

Catherine Byrne: I am taking this Topical Issue matter on behalf of the Minister. I welcome this chance to update the House on the current position on the accident and emergency department at University Hospital Limerick. Pressure on accident and emergency departments throughout the country has been rising as the population is both growing and ageing. Accident and emergency department attendances have been...

Topical Issue Debate: Accident and Emergency Departments (6 Jul 2016)

Catherine Byrne: I have taken note of all the questions the Deputy has asked. Unfortunately I cannot answer them for him, but I will say from the reply the Minister gave that it is good news that University Hospital Limerick will have a new emergency department in the first quarter of 2017 and I will ask him to come back with a specific date if that is possible. I also acknowledge, as the Minister has done...

Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) Bill 2016: Second Stage (6 Jul 2016)

Catherine Byrne: I move: "That the Bill be now read a Second Time." I am pleased to introduce the Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) Bill 2016 to the House. Everyone is aware of the devastation that drugs cause to individuals and communities across the State. Recently we have become all too aware of the on-street dealing in prescription medication, some of which is controlled under the misuse of drugs...

Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) Bill 2016: Second Stage (Resumed) (7 Jul 2016)

Catherine Byrne: I begin by thanking the 27 Deputies who took the time to come to the Chamber to speak on this issue. It was the same with the Senators last week. The drugs issue is beyond politics or political parties. It is about people's lives. It is in every town and village throughout the country so it is not just relevant to the capital city. It knows no boundaries. It can affect people who are...

Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) Bill 2016: Second Stage (Resumed) (7 Jul 2016)

Catherine Byrne: Many people have spoken about the drugs task forces and I am very familiar with the drugs task forces in my area and the work they do and do not do. I have concerns, like everyone else who has spoken, about the loss of funding to drugs task forces down through the years. I am not going to stand here and repeat what I have said before, that is, that money was not there. When there is no...

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed) - Other Questions: Health Services (12 Jul 2016)

Catherine Byrne: While it is the policy of the Health Service Executive not to comment on individual cases, I can confirm that the circumstances surrounding the case referred to by the Deputy are being examined by the HSE. On the specific issues raised by the Deputy, I am advised by the HSE that quality and patient safety are the responsibility of all staff and core to service provision across primary care...

Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed) - Other Questions: Health Services (12 Jul 2016)

Catherine Byrne: As stated, this is being examined by the HSE. I understand the Deputy's frustration because I read some of the other notes on the case. Deputy O'Sullivan is right in that the person in question was receiving services in different centres throughout the city. Unfortunately, my reading of it is that she fell off the radar. There are certain circumstances surrounding this case that need to...

Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) Bill 2016 [Seanad]: Referral to Select Committee (12 Jul 2016)

Catherine Byrne: I move:That the Bill be referred to the Select Committee on Health pursuant to Standing Order 149.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Misuse of Drugs (12 Jul 2016)

Catherine Byrne: Benzodiazepines, as a group of medicines, are commonly used to treat anxiety, sleep disturbance and insomnia. Benzodiazepines are known to be associated with dependence and withdrawal symptoms and consequently are primarily recommended for short-term treatment only. The 'Z drugs' are a group of medicines (zopiclone, zolpidem and zaleplon) which are used to treat insomnia. They have a...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Drug Treatment Programmes (12 Jul 2016)

Catherine Byrne: Suboxone is authorised as a substitution treatment for opioid drug dependence, within a framework of medical, social and psychological treatment. It is currently being provided to a cohort of patients involved in the pilot and feasibility study for Suboxone. If the provision of Suboxone is to be given the same statutory basis as methadone, in order to ensure its safe, appropriate and...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Health Services Funding (12 Jul 2016)

Catherine Byrne: As this is a service matter, it has been referred to the Health Service Executive for attention and direct reply to the Deputy. If the Deputy has not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days he should contact my Private Office and they will follow up the matter with them.

Select Committee on Health: Business of Committee (14 Jul 2016)

Catherine Byrne: I thank the members of the select committee for allowing me to be here to proceed with Committee Stage of the Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) Bill, which has gone through the Seanad and the Dáil. For those who have not followed the proceedings in both Houses, the purpose of the Bill is to control certain substances that are legal but which will be put on the controlled substance list in the...

Select Committee on Health: Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) Bill 2016: Committee Stage (14 Jul 2016)

Catherine Byrne: I thank the committee for its support for the Bill. I hope that once the Bill is passed it will be enacted in the autumn.