Results 10,041-10,060 of 24,635 for speaker:Mary Harney

Written Answers — Hospital Services: Hospital Services (28 Mar 2007)

Mary Harney: Operational responsibility for the management and delivery of health and personal social services was assigned to the Health Service Executive under the Health Act 2004, and funding for all health services has been provided as part of its overall Vote. Therefore, the Executive is the appropriate body to consider the particular matter raised by the Deputy. My Department has requested the...

Written Answers — Ministerial Appointments: Ministerial Appointments (28 Mar 2007)

Mary Harney: The information requested by the Deputy is as set out below. It should be noted that the details presented represent both current vacancies on the boards of bodies under the aegis of my Department, which are in the process of being filled, in addition to those vacancies which are due to occur before 31 May 2007. I would envisage filling each of these vacancies in a timely fashion to allow...

Written Answers — Health Service Staff: Health Service Staff (28 Mar 2007)

Mary Harney: Over 120,000 people work full-time or part-time in our public health services. In recent years, the Government's ongoing high level of investment in health has achieved and maintained significant increases in the numbers of doctors, nurses and other health care professionals employed in the public health services. The Government has also invested heavily in the education and training of...

Written Answers — Hospitals Building Programme: Hospitals Building Programme (28 Mar 2007)

Mary Harney: No public land is being given to private individuals to build private hospitals. In July 2005, following Government approval, I issued a policy direction to the Health Service Executive to develop co-located private hospitals on the sites of public hospitals. The aim of this initiative is to transfer private activity from within the public hospital system to new privately-financed and...

Written Answers — Health Service Staff: Health Service Staff (28 Mar 2007)

Mary Harney: As you are aware, a draft code of governance has been prepared by the Health Service Executive and was submitted to me in late September. The contents of this Code have been assessed by my Department and discussions are being finalised with other Departments/Offices that have an interest in this issue. I anticipate that the examination of the Code will be completed shortly and I will be in...

Written Answers — Animal Welfare: Animal Welfare (28 Mar 2007)

Mary Harney: Inspections of registered user establishments are carried out in accordance with Section 10 of the Cruelty to Animals Act 1876, as amended. The Act provides for all registered establishments to be visited from time to time by inspectors for the purpose of securing compliance with the provisions of the Act. Under the Act only persons who hold a relevant medical or veterinary qualification...

Written Answers — Drug Treatment Programme: Drug Treatment Programme (28 Mar 2007)

Mary Harney: The 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.

Hospitals Building Programme. (29 Mar 2007)

Mary Harney: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 and 2 together. In July 2005, following Government approval, I issued a policy direction to the Health Service Executive to develop co-located private hospitals on the sites of public hospitals. The aim of this initiative is to transfer private activity from within the public hospital system to new privately-financed and managed facilities and thereby free...

Hospitals Building Programme. (29 Mar 2007)

Mary Harney: I hope Deputy Twomey will be re-elected. He should not be so pessimistic.

Hospitals Building Programme. (29 Mar 2007)

Mary Harney: First, I thank Deputy Twomey for his good wishes for the forthcoming election. I am not certain we will not have another health Question Time before the Taoiseach goes to the President to dissolve the Dáil. I return his compliments and wish him and all the spokespersons well in the election. The purpose of this policy is to free up approximately 1,000 beds that are ring-fenced for private...

Hospitals Building Programme. (29 Mar 2007)

Mary Harney: The greatest guarantor of keeping the cost of health insurance down is competition. One does not keep the cost of health insurance down by restricting the capacity of private beds. If one does that, one is insuring people who cannot get services. That does not make sense. In all markets competition drives innovation and keeps prices down. That is why I welcome the entry to the Irish...

Hospitals Building Programme. (29 Mar 2007)

Mary Harney: I do not accept that I have no mandate. The Government made a policy decision in 2005 and it is a matter for the HSE to implement it. We do not put the implementation of policy on hold in advance of or during elections. Everybody is entitled to access the public hospital system. Universal coverage is available in Ireland, which is not the case in other places. At present, however, not...

Hospitals Building Programme. (29 Mar 2007)

Mary Harney: I do not know whether that information is commercially sensitive but I have no problems with making it available. There are a number of bidders on each site and the HSE is following the new procedures introduced by the Department Finance of negotiating in advance. The process has continued for the past year and has been very successful in terms of addressing many of the issues which concern...

Hospitals Building Programme. (29 Mar 2007)

Mary Harney: I do not know whether issues of commercial sensitivity arise. There is no question of hiding anything.

Hospitals Building Programme. (29 Mar 2007)

Mary Harney: Yesterday, Mr. Finn addressed the Select Committee on Health and Children in private session and it is fair to say he was very open in his remarks.

Industrial Relations. (29 Mar 2007)

Mary Harney: The issues of nurses' pay and working hours have been fully processed through the State's industrial relations structures and procedures, the Labour Relations Commission and the Labour Court. While health service management has accepted the Labour Court recommendation, the Irish Nurses Organisation and Psychiatric Nurses Association state they have neither accepted nor rejected this...

Industrial Relations. (29 Mar 2007)

Mary Harney: No.

Industrial Relations. (29 Mar 2007)

Mary Harney: I agree that nurses are the backbone of the health system. They represent 35% of those who work in the system and are there 24-hours per day, seven days per week. They spend considerably longer periods with hospital patients than any other group of workers and do a fantastic job. In recent years, we have elevated nursing to a graduate level profession, with eight applicants for every...

Industrial Relations. (29 Mar 2007)

Mary Harney: Building costs are the same but that is not the issue. I visited Sweden where I met the managers of St. Goran's Hospital. It used to be managed by the state until the socialist government transferred its management to the private sector. The private company received the same amount the year it took over as the government had provided the previous year. Not only did the company make a...

Cancer Screening Programme. (29 Mar 2007)

Mary Harney: It is my objective to have an effective national cervical screening programme rolled out, beginning late this year. The programme will provide free cervical screening for women in the 25 to 60 year age group nationally and aims to reduce mortality from cervical cancer by up to 80%. For that purpose, on 1 January 2007, I established a national cancer screening service, which amalgamates...