Results 8,641-8,660 of 21,128 for speaker:James Reilly

Hospital Services (19 Jun 2012)

James Reilly: I will not be providing Deputy Ó Caoláin with copies of that information. This is a consultation process that will be predicated on safe clinical practice, but also on the principle, to which I alluded in the previous answer, around the smaller hospital framework. If we are going to have a situation where we want the larger hospitals that have that received investment to deliver the...

Medicinal Products (19 Jun 2012)

James Reilly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 113, 609, 615, 654, 672 and 695 together. The manufacturer of fingolimod, Gilenya®, has submitted an application to the Health Service Executive for the product to be reimbursed through community pharmacies under the high-tech drug scheme. The list of medicinal products provided under the scheme is reviewed on a regular basis. The application in respect of...

Medicinal Products (19 Jun 2012)

James Reilly: The pharmacological unit carries out a health technology assessment of a medication, but that is only part of the equation. The HSE has a group that further advises on and evaluates the matter above and beyond what the pharmacological unit has stated and the health technology assessment has shown. It is not true to say, therefore, that this alone decides whether a drug will be made...

Medicinal Products (19 Jun 2012)

James Reilly: It will be made as soon as is practicable. That is all I can say. In the case of some of these drugs, it is not as simple as making a decision today, following which it will be available immediately. There are other things that have to be done and the position is different in the case of each drug. There is a major responsibility on everybody to be involved, not just policymakers and...

Medicinal Products (19 Jun 2012)

James Reilly: The decision was made within the HSE and the pharmacological unit. I will have to find out for the Deputy precisely which individuals were involved. As the drugs are being made available, nobody will suffer loss as a consequence. The last thing anybody wants to do, or the last thing anybody should do, he or she a doctor, a politician or the Minister for Health, is to play God. That is a...

Written Answers — Hospital Services: Hospital Services (19 Jun 2012)

James Reilly: As the Deputy is aware this country is facing a great economic challenge. In the current economic climate the acute sector must reduce its costs in order to deliver the agreed level of activity within the resources available to it. In terms of service delivery, we must concentrate on getting the best possible services for patients from the budgets available to us. This means we need to focus...

Written Answers — Primary Care Centres: Primary Care Centres (19 Jun 2012)

James Reilly: I can confirm that I have been approached by numerous companies with a view to funding the provision of primary care centres in Ireland. It is my Department's policy to work with all interested parties to facilitate the provision of primary care infrastructure which delivers value for money. There are always more construction projects than can be funded from the Exchequer's capital health...

Written Answers — Health Insurance: Health Insurance (19 Jun 2012)

James Reilly: I am strongly committed to protecting the principle of community rating in the private health insurance market. Community rating means that everybody is charged the same premium for a particular plan, irrespective of age, gender and state of health. Community rating needs a robust system of risk equalisation. Otherwise insurers will have a strong incentive to avoid older customers and retain...

Written Answers — Cosmetic Surgery: Cosmetic Surgery (19 Jun 2012)

James Reilly: In 2000 the Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) in the USA raised concerns in relation to Poly Implant Prosthese (PIP) saline breast implants. Although produced by the same manufacturer, the Poly Implant Prosthese (PIP) silicone gel implants, which were recalled in March 2010, are a separate product to the saline breast implants which were of concern to the FDA in 2000. In 2000 my...

Written Answers — Hospital Services: Hospital Services (19 Jun 2012)

James Reilly: I fully accept the thrust of this report, which is first and foremost about patient safety. I have moved quickly to address one of the key recommendations, the establishment of a committee to oversee the implementation of the report. The oversight committee, which I announced on 11 June, will be chaired by Dr Tony Holohan, the Chief Medical Officer. Confirmation of some members is awaited and...

Written Answers — Hospital Facilities: Hospital Facilities (19 Jun 2012)

James Reilly: I wish to advise the Deputy that there is no embargo on the reopening of closed beds. I believe we must concentrate on getting the best possible services for patients from the budgets available to us. This means we need to focus on how beds are used, on the throughput of patients, on reducing length of stay to international norms and on having as many procedures as possible carried out as...

Written Answers — Hospital Services: Hospital Services (19 Jun 2012)

James Reilly: I want to ensure that as many services as possible can be provided safely and appropriately in smaller, local hospitals. On this basis, the organisation of hospital services nationally, regionally and locally will be informed by the ongoing development of the HSE Clinical Programmes. The Framework for the future development of smaller hospitals has been drafted by a joint HSE/Departmental...

Written Answers — Departmental Reports: Departmental Reports (19 Jun 2012)

James Reilly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 126, 136 and 157 together. Professor Oonagh Walsh, independent researcher from University College Cork was commissioned by the Chief Medical Officer in the Department of Health to draft a report in relation to the practice of symphysiotomy in Ireland. This draft report is the first stage of a two-stage process in relation to this research on the practice of...

Written Answers — Health Service Staff: Health Service Staff (19 Jun 2012)

James Reilly: To date, the retirement benefits of more than 90% of staff who retired from the public health sector before the end of the 'grace period' have been fully paid out. The processing of benefits in some cases can be very complex . Where delays have been experienced, or where a retired staff member has requested to be paid some monies, the HSE has made interim part-payments. This is in order to...

Written Answers — Hospital Waiting Lists: Hospital Waiting Lists (19 Jun 2012)

James Reilly: The HSE March 2012 Report showed that a total of 158,850 patients are waiting less than 12 months for a first time outpatient attendance. A further 45,959 patients are waiting over 12 months. It is likely that these are an underestimate of those waiting as not all hospitals are currently reporting outpatient waiting time data to the HSE. The issue of Outpatient waiting lists was essentially...

Written Answers — Hospital Waiting Lists: Hospital Waiting Lists (19 Jun 2012)

James Reilly: Tallaght has participated in the SDU Scheduled Care Performance Improvement programme and as a result has eliminated the problem of excessively long waits for routine orthopaedic surgery. By December last year Tallaght had reached the Minister's target of having no patient waiting for in-patient or daycase surgery for more than 12 months for all specialties, including orthopaedics. As of...

Written Answers — Cosmetic Surgery: Cosmetic Surgery (19 Jun 2012)

James Reilly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 132 and 671 together. My Department's priority at all times has been that the three treating clinics involved in the PIP breast implant issue provide professional and appropriate care to their affected clients. The Chief Medical Officer has met with and continues to engage with the clinics to ensure that best practice and patient support is paramount in the...

Written Answers — Health Service Staff: Health Service Staff (19 Jun 2012)

James Reilly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 133, 569 and 592 together. In the health service, agency staff have traditionally been used to meet a short-term service need or where some flexibility in staffing a service is required. In 2011, although the HSE had negotiated new agency contracts which involve lower unit costs, the use of agency staff accounted for approximately €177 million. This was...

Written Answers — Health Insurance: Health Insurance (19 Jun 2012)

James Reilly: The decision taken by Vhi to decline to provide cover for the hospital facility at Mahon in Cork was a commercial decision taken by the Board of Vhi. While I was disappointed at that decision, I am not in a position to intervene in the commercial decisions of the Vhi or any other health insurer. I have raised the issue with the Chairperson and CEO of the Vhi in the context of competition...

Written Answers — Cosmetic Surgery: Cosmetic Surgery (19 Jun 2012)

James Reilly: It is not quite the case, as the Deputy has stated, that private cosmetic surgery clinics are beyond the regulation of the State. Healthcare professionals, including doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, pharmacists etc employed by such clinics are required to be registered with their relevant professional regulatory body. Much of the legislation governing healthcare professionals has been...