Results 4,881-4,900 of 24,635 for speaker:Mary Harney

Written Answers — Hospital Staff: Hospital Staff (31 Jan 2006)

Mary Harney: Responsibility for staff recruitment within the Health Service Executive rests with the HSE. I am advised by the HSE that it has initiated the process to fill the vacancy arising of National Hospitals Office director. The recruitment process will be undertaken by the Public Appointments Service on behalf of the HSE, in accordance with the provisions of code of practice 01/05, external and...

Written Answers — Hospital Services: Hospital Services (31 Jan 2006)

Mary Harney: The Deputy's question relates to the management and delivery of health and personal social services, which are the responsibility of the Health Service Executive under the Health Act 2004. Accordingly, my Department has requested the parliamentary affairs division of the executive to arrange to have this matter investigated and to have a reply issued directly to the Deputy.

Written Answers — National Drugs Strategy: National Drugs Strategy (31 Jan 2006)

Mary Harney: The Deputy's question relates to the management and delivery of health and personal social services, which are the responsibility of the Health Service Executive under the Health Act 2004. Accordingly, my Department has requested the parliamentary affairs division of the executive to arrange to have this matter investigated and to have a reply issued directly to the Deputy.

Written Answers — Health Services: Health Services (31 Jan 2006)

Mary Harney: My Department has had discussions with the Irish Health Services Accreditation Board about the development and operation of accreditation schemes for residential care and primary care services. The board intends to develop these schemes further in 2006.

Written Answers — Health Services: Health Services (31 Jan 2006)

Mary Harney: The management and delivery of health and personal services are now the responsibility of the Health Service Executive. This includes responsibility for the provision of CAT scanning services at hospitals in the south east. Accordingly, my Department has requested the parliamentary affairs division of the executive to arrange to have this matter investigated and to have a reply issued...

Written Answers — Health Service Reform: Health Service Reform (31 Jan 2006)

Mary Harney: All the international data suggests that good hospital management usually results in both effective financial control and high quality patient care. There is no evidence that poor patient care has resulted in financial gains. In fact, the reverse usually occurs. I agree that quality of care is an issue of concern to all of those who use the health services and quality is as important as value...

Written Answers — Clinical Indemnity Scheme: Clinical Indemnity Scheme (31 Jan 2006)

Mary Harney: The clinical indemnity scheme, CIS, has been established on the principle of enterprise liability. As such, the scheme covers institutions such as the Health Service Executive, voluntary hospitals, agencies providing services to persons with disabilities and so forth, rather than individual practitioners. The activities of doctors, nurses and others employed by enterprises included in the CIS...

Written Answers — Pension Provisions: Pension Provisions (31 Jan 2006)

Mary Harney: My Department administers two superannuation schemes for public health sector employees, the nominated health agencies superannuation scheme and the voluntary hospitals superannuation scheme. The Health Service Executive administers the local government superannuation scheme for its employees. Public health sector scheme members and pensioners have a right to appeal the trustees'...

Written Answers — Health Services: Health Services (31 Jan 2006)

Mary Harney: The national service plan 2006 of the Health Service Executive provides a commitment to develop proposals to support patients who have to travel long distances to access specialist services, with particular focus on those travelling for radiotherapy treatment. I approved this plan in December and it was laid before both Houses of the Oireachtas earlier this month. I made an additional €9...

Written Answers — Hospital Staff: Hospital Staff (31 Jan 2006)

Mary Harney: Since 2003, management has attempted to commence substantive negotiations on a new contract with the medical organisations. For a number of reasons, including the organisations' opposition to the extension of the clinical indemnity scheme to consultants, both the IMO and the IHCA refused to begin talks until November 2005. There is no doubt that the implementation of management's proposals...

Written Answers — Medical Cards: Medical Cards (31 Jan 2006)

Mary Harney: On the basis of the figures contained in the 2004 annual report of the Health Service Executive, shared services, primary care reimbursement service, it is estimated that the additional cost involved of providing GP visit cards to all those non-medical card holders under 16 years of age will be in the region of €129 million. On a similar basis, the cost involved of providing medical cards...

Written Answers — Health Care Costs: Health Care Costs (31 Jan 2006)

Mary Harney: As Minister for Health and Children I have no function regarding the setting of charges by consultants in respect of their private practice. This is a matter for individual consultants. In common with Ministers for Health in most countries, I am concerned at rising health care costs, whether funded by the State or by individual contributions, and believe increases should be kept within reason.

Written Answers — Health Service Reform: Health Service Reform (31 Jan 2006)

Mary Harney: It should be noted from the outset that the establishment of the Health Service Executive did not cost €200 million. Owing to the creation of the HSE's Vote and the consequent introduction of vote accounting procedures, it was necessary to make some technical adjustments at Revised Estimates time in 2005 to accommodate this process. Furthermore, none of these technical adjustments required...

Written Answers — Infectious Diseases: Infectious Diseases (31 Jan 2006)

Mary Harney: For the purposes of the surveillance, prevention and control of MRSA the health protection surveillance centre collects data on MRSA bacteraemia, also known as bloodstream infection or blood poisoning, as part of the European antimicrobial resistance surveillance system, EARSS. EARSS collects data on the first episode of blood stream infection per patient per quarter. EARSS was designed to...

Written Answers — Hospitals Building Programme: Hospitals Building Programme (31 Jan 2006)

Mary Harney: It has been accepted that the current infrastructure at Our Lady's Hospital for Sick Children does not generally meet the standards required for a modern paediatric hospital. The available facilities do not satisfactorily accommodate the range and extent of current clinical and associated activity. In recognition of this, a project team was established to plan for the overall future...

Written Answers — Medical Council: Medical Council (31 Jan 2006)

Mary Harney: Under the Medical Practitioners Act 1978, the Medical Council was established as the body with the responsibility for the registration of medical practitioners and the regulation of their activities. Officials in my Department are actively working on the drafting of a new Medical Practitioners Bill and, as part of that work, I have requested them to consider the manner in which non-medical...

Written Answers — Birth-Related Injury Claims: Birth-Related Injury Claims (31 Jan 2006)

Mary Harney: The position on the introduction of a no fault compensation scheme for infants who suffer brain damage at or close to birth remains unchanged. The Attorney General has raised serious concerns about the constitutional implications of establishing no fault compensation schemes. In the light of this advice it would not be prudent to establish such a scheme. Parents of infants who suffer cerebral...

Written Answers — Hospital Accommodation: Hospital Accommodation (31 Jan 2006)

Mary Harney: The World Health Organisation's European Health for All database of June 2005 shows that the number of acute care beds in Ireland in 2003 was three per 1,000 population and that the EU average for the same year was 4 per 1,000 population. The organisation advises caution in the interpretation of the cross-country data in the database. Health data recording systems and practices vary between...

Written Answers — Cancer Services: Cancer Services (31 Jan 2006)

Mary Harney: I am fully committed to the development of high quality and quality assured cancer care for all patients regardless of geography. This objective is shared by the chief executive officer of the Health Service Executive and is reflected in the executive's national service plan, 2006. There is a significant role for primary care services in the provision and development of cancer care. These...

Written Answers — Health Service Staff: Health Service Staff (31 Jan 2006)

Mary Harney: Employment information collected by my Department relates to grades and employing authority rather than to specific areas of responsibility for individual staff. The most recent information shows that the number of social workers employed in the public health service increased by 897 to 2061 or 77% in whole-time equivalent terms between 31 December 1997 and 30 September 2005. The table below...