Results 9,641-9,660 of 49,836 for speaker:Stephen Donnelly

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: State Response to Recent Spike in Covid-19 Cases (Resumed) (26 Aug 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: I absolutely share the Deputy's concern and heartbreak about what has happened. What I will commit to is that the right approach will be taken to answering the questions that need to be answered for the families. In CervicalCheck, for example, the right answer was deemed not to be a public inquiry but the most excellent work that Dr. Scally did. That led to many recommendations which are...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: State Response to Recent Spike in Covid-19 Cases (Resumed) (26 Aug 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: The median time in the public system from a swab to a lab result is 30 hours or 1.25 days. I do not have the details but I am happy to look at them. When people talk about median times of approximately three days, it includes several days of contact tracing that takes place afterwards. The median time at the moment for the HSE from a swab to a test result is 30 hours.

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: State Response to Recent Spike in Covid-19 Cases (Resumed) (26 Aug 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: I thank the Deputy. I acknowledge the ongoing work he did before he was a Member of the Oireachtas and continues to do now. The Deputy and I both know that his question is not within the remit of the country's response to Covid-19. Nonetheless, I know it is something that is very important to him, the other Deputies in the Waterford area and, most important, the people of Waterford and the...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: State Response to Recent Spike in Covid-19 Cases (Resumed) (26 Aug 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: To clarify, does the Deputy's question relate to a future contract with private hospitals in the context of Covid for the coming months?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: State Response to Recent Spike in Covid-19 Cases (Resumed) (26 Aug 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: All options are on the table. Tenders have been issued to all private hospitals. This is not being done in a co-ordinated way by the association this time. Tenders have been issued for services, beds and surge capacity and are being negotiated hospital by hospital by the HSE. It is entirely possible that, as well as procuring beds and diagnostics, we will procure services on a...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: State Response to Recent Spike in Covid-19 Cases (Resumed) (26 Aug 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: I thank the Deputy.

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: State Response to Recent Spike in Covid-19 Cases (Resumed) (26 Aug 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: I thank the Deputy. The short answer to the question on face coverings in financial institutions is "Yes", for the reasons the Deputy has outlined. As I am sure the committee will appreciate, I want to avoid sounding like I am the Chief Medical Officer by providing direct public health advice. I will do my best to paraphrase the advice of the acting Chief Medical Officer. The advice is...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: State Response to Recent Spike in Covid-19 Cases (Resumed) (26 Aug 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: There are two aspects to this. There are randomised inspections, which the Health and Safety Authority, HSA, have now stepped up, as is right and proper. Then there is mass serial testing. When the National Ambulance Service comes to a plant, it is important that its staff can carry out testing quickly. That means notice must be given. However, no concern has ever been raised about...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: State Response to Recent Spike in Covid-19 Cases (Resumed) (26 Aug 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: That is happening more.

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: State Response to Recent Spike in Covid-19 Cases (Resumed) (26 Aug 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: Agreed. I will get the exact figure for the committee, but I believe I read this morning that something like 22 of the last 27 HSA inspections had been unannounced. I will provide the committee with a full briefing on that.

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: State Response to Recent Spike in Covid-19 Cases (Resumed) (26 Aug 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: I thank the Deputy. I have the figures regarding the Health and Safety Authority. There have been 23 meat plant inspections in August to date, and 22 of the 23 were unannounced. I want to note the Health and Safety Authority does not fall under the remit of the Department of Health but, obviously, we are working very closely with it.

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: State Response to Recent Spike in Covid-19 Cases (Resumed) (26 Aug 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: I agree. Deputy McGrath asked whether we need more Health and Safety Authority inspections. That is a question directly for the Minister, Deputy Varadkar, but I can give the Deputy my opinion as Minister for Health. As we look at the meat processing plants and other high-risk areas, I want to see as many inspections as possible to make sure high-risk workplaces in particular are compliant...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: State Response to Recent Spike in Covid-19 Cases (Resumed) (26 Aug 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: I cannot speak to an individual company that hires a private company for testing.

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: State Response to Recent Spike in Covid-19 Cases (Resumed) (26 Aug 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: I thank the Deputy. With regard to a detailed submission, I was asked to make a five minute opening statement. As the Deputy knows, there was a very serious incident at the Department yesterday. Any information the committee wants we will get. What I submitted was the opening statement, which is the normal protocol in this case.

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: State Response to Recent Spike in Covid-19 Cases (Resumed) (26 Aug 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: If there is any information Deputy O'Reilly needs, I ask her to let me know.

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: State Response to Recent Spike in Covid-19 Cases (Resumed) (26 Aug 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: I will ask for a report specifically on how many weeks or days any delay will be but I can give the Deputy a decent answer on the flu vaccine and what is coming. We have 1.3 million doses on order, which is sufficient for a 90% uptake among the at-risk groups and healthcare workers, all of which will be provided for free. On the specific version referenced by the Deputy, we have 600,000...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: State Response to Recent Spike in Covid-19 Cases (Resumed) (26 Aug 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: That is certainly not the plan. The plan is to administer this as quickly as possible. The original plan is September. I will get a detailed note as to what delays may occur but the plan as I understand it is September.

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: State Response to Recent Spike in Covid-19 Cases (Resumed) (26 Aug 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: No, I am not aware of any delay.

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: State Response to Recent Spike in Covid-19 Cases (Resumed) (26 Aug 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: With regard to contact tracing, we were advised this morning that there are 100 people working on it today and the Minister said there will be 150 people working full-time on contact tracing by the end of the week. Where are these people coming from? Have they been redeployed from other areas of the health service or have they been contracted to do the work of contract tracing?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: State Response to Recent Spike in Covid-19 Cases (Resumed) (26 Aug 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: They are being redeployed from various parts of the public sector, including civil servants from various Departments, the Army and other places.