Results 48,221-48,240 of 49,836 for speaker:Stephen Donnelly

Written Answers — Department of Health: Primary Care Services (2 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: As this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Health Services (3 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: I thank the Deputy for the question. The national review of adult specialist cardiac services is finalised and I have received the report. I do not have the date but I have received it and I will move to publish it very shortly. I want to bring it to Government. It is a very good and comprehensive report. One of the reasons I did not publish it right away was I did not want to publish a...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Health Services (3 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: I fully accept the Deputy's point. We will bring the review to Government imminently and it will then be published. The review kicked off after the focus on University Hospital Waterford. That was the genesis of it. I thank Professor Nolan and his team for their work. When the Deputy sees the report he will see it is a comprehensive piece of work. What Professor Nolan and his team have...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Health Services (3 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: I will not do the topic justice here. There has been a lot of careful thinking. We will publish the report and allow everybody to look at it in the round. The Government has progressed substantially in terms of the second cath lab in Waterford University Hospital. As the Deputy will be aware, the second cath lab opened in September of last year. That was an important milestone. The...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Health Services (3 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: I appreciate that. We will publish the report. Let us all review it in the round.

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Hospital Services (3 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: I thank the Deputy for the question. I support his call for ongoing investment in the medical assessment unit in Nenagh Hospital. The unit has been providing a valuable service locally. In many cases, it is an alternative to the emergency department for GP referrals. It is currently open seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Last year, more than 4,000 patients were referred to the...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Hospital Services (3 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: The number of presentations does not reflect the concerns that people are bringing to the Deputy. I will share the relevant numbers. In 2021, there were 1,300 referrals. In 2022, there were 2,500 referrals. Last year, there were 4,100 referrals. This year's number will be in excess of that. Between 2021 and 2023, years for which we have the figures, there was a 300% increase in the...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Hospital Services (3 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: This is probably the first conversation I have had where any Deputy has called for a reduction in healthcare service provision in a constituency. I do not think I have ever heard hospital staff calling for fewer services to be provided. We need to treat this carefully. As I said, the number of referrals is not in line with what the Deputy is hearing. The number of referrals tripled in...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Hospital Services (3 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: I know the Deputy is not saying that, and of course we will do as he says. It is interesting that the concerns the unions are raising with the HSE are that they do not want to work the rosters that are being offered. That is what the HSE is hearing. The Deputy might share specific examples of unfilled slots and I will ask the HSE about it on the back of this conversation. It goes without...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: National Children's Hospital (3 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: I thank the Deputy for his question. As we are all aware, the main contractor has now missed its own deadline 14 times. It missed its own deadlines four times this year alone. Neither the HSE nor the Government has confidence in deadlines that a contractor puts forward when the contractor misses its own deadlines 14 times. Our position and that of the board has been clear, in that the...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: National Children's Hospital (3 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: The Deputy raised a few points. Let me be clear, in that I wanted the State to take ownership of the hospital around now. The contractor told us it would be in October or November, but it has missed its deadline. It has under-resourced the project repeatedly and failed to meet its deadline. I agree with the Deputy about how the hospital development board, which is acting on our behalf,...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: National Children's Hospital (3 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: At this point, it would be a futile exercise to second-guess the contract. The contract is what the board has and we must manage the project within it. The board is using the contract to the fullest extent possible. I acknowledge the Deputy’s role in this. He must, and should, put pressure on us. I would were I in his chair, and did. There is value to us speaking with one...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: National Children's Hospital (3 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: I just acknowledged that. I will cite an example that the Deputy’s colleague, Deputy Doherty, raised with me at the health committee. I believe Deputy Cullinane might have been present for it. It had to do with grilles. Clearly, he had been given information. I believe he was acting in good faith. He made an impassioned contribution and said that this was a design flaw and,...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: National Children's Hospital (3 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: -----approximately €24 million and delay the project by months.

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: National Children's Hospital (3 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: That is clearly what he had been told and he brought it-----

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: National Children's Hospital (3 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: I will finish on this, as it is important. Not only were the claims not correct-----

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: National Children's Hospital (3 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: -----but the total cost was not €24 million. It was €200,000-----

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: National Children's Hospital (3 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: -----and the board got a third party to complete the work in a matter of weeks. We should be united in shining a light on this.

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: National Children's Hospital (3 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: By the way, the main contractor still sent an invoice to the board for the €24 million.

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Primary Care Centres (3 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: I join the Deputy in offering my sincere condolences to Dr. Fitzsimons, her children and the entire family on their recent bereavement. The Gurteen health centre is located in south Sligo. The centre houses a public health nursing service, a day centre for older persons and the local GP practice. Local HSE primary care management has advised that it is aware of the issue of restricted...