Results 14,041-14,060 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

Written Answers — Department of Health: National Treatment Purchase Fund (15 Apr 2015)

Leo Varadkar: The National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF) is currently working with the HSE Special Delivery Unit to achieve a reduction in wait times for in-patients, day cases and outpatients. The NTPF is also responsible for the collection, collation and reporting of both in-patient and outpatient waiting lists and is responsible for the pricing of nursing home beds in approximately 430 Nursing Homes...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Ambulance Service Provision (15 Apr 2015)

Leo Varadkar: First, let me be clear that the National Ambulance Service (NAS) is not taking over ambulance services from Dublin Fire Brigade (DFB). What is proposed are changes to call management and clinical governance, with a view to improving the service. DFB will continue to provide emergency ambulance services in Dublin, through its own vehicles and staff, and DFB fire vehicles will continue to...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Health Strategies (15 Apr 2015)

Leo Varadkar: My Department is developing a new Cancer Strategy for the period 2016-2025. It is envisaged that the new Strategy will be completed by the end of 2015 for implementation from 2016. I am establishing a Steering Group to provide guidance and advice to my Department in formulating the Strategy. The Steering Group will include a range of expertise across various aspects of cancer control,...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Appointment Status (15 Apr 2015)

Leo Varadkar: The Deputy will appreciate that it is contrary to the Health Service Executive (Governance) Act 2013 for me to make a direction to the HSE or a hospital to benefit or prioritise any individual person or patient. The scheduling of appointments for patients is a matter for the hospital to which the patient has been referred. Should a patient's general practitioner consider that the...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Nursing Home Services (15 Apr 2015)

Leo Varadkar: The Medicinal Products (Prescription and Control of Supply) (Amendment) Regulations, 2007 (S.I. No. 201 of 2007) and the Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) Regulations, 2007 (S.I. No. 200 of 2007) signed into law on the 1 May 2007, give prescriptive authority to nurses and midwives under specific conditions. The legislation allows a registered nurse or midwife to prescribe a range of medications...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Appointment Delays (15 Apr 2015)

Leo Varadkar: As this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to the Deputy directly. If he has not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days he should contact my Private Office and my officials will follow the matter up.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospitals Building Programme (15 Apr 2015)

Leo Varadkar: The National Paediatric Hospital Development Board is the statutory body responsible for planning, designing, building and equipping the new children's hospital. The new hospital will be co-located with St James's Hospital, and ultimately tri-located with a maternity hospital to be developed on campus. In addition to the main hospital, the project includes two satellite centres at the...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Maternity Services (15 Apr 2015)

Leo Varadkar: Currently there are 19 public maternity maternity hospitals located at: -Dublin North East - the Rotunda; OLOL Drogheda; Cavan General Hospital; -Dublin Midlands - Coombe Women's and Infants' Hospital; Midland Regional Hospital Portlaoise; -Ireland East - National Maternity Hospital Holles Street; Midland Regional Hospital Mullingar; St Luke's Hospital Kilkenny; Wexford General Hospital;...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Maternity Services (15 Apr 2015)

Leo Varadkar: As this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to the Deputy directly. If he has not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and my officials will follow the matter up.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Groups (15 Apr 2015)

Leo Varadkar: Seven hospital groups, including the Children's Hospital Group, have been established on a non-statutory administrative basis are set out in the table following No. Composition i RCSI (Dublin North East): Beaumont Hospital; Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Drogheda;  Connolly Hospital; Cavan General Hospital; Rotunda Hospital; Louth County Hospital; Monaghan Hospital. (Academic Partner:...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Semi-State Bodies (15 Apr 2015)

Leo Varadkar: The VHI is the only commercial semi-State Company under the aegis of my Department. VHI is not required under its governing legislation to make dividend payments to the Exchequer.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Drug Treatment Programmes (16 Apr 2015)

Leo Varadkar: I am advised by the HSE that there are three addiction counsellor posts vacant in the Dublin region. Recently, these positions were offered to candidates on the relevant HSE national recruitment service panel. As no candidate accepted the offer of work in the Dublin area, a recruitment competition specifically to fill these vacancies is under consideration by the HSE. The ending of the...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Drug Treatment Programmes (16 Apr 2015)

Leo Varadkar: It is important to point out that the total cross-departmental budget for the drugs programme was reduced consistently throughout the period of the recession. It was reduced in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 and again in 2013. In 2014 in was increased from €237.5 million to €240 million and this year it is being increased again. When we had a dedicated Minister of State with...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Drug Treatment Programmes (16 Apr 2015)

Leo Varadkar: It is true that positions have not been filled in a number of areas across health, but this is not because of a lack of finance or effort by the front-line managers involved. We have moved from a situation where for years, all of the effort involved paring down staff, so when one then tells managers to start hiring a lot of people it creates difficulties. We are finding it difficult to...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Hospitals Funding (16 Apr 2015)

Leo Varadkar: For the first time in seven years, the overall budget for health services has increased. The HSE will have €635 million more available in 2015 than was provided in the original Estimate for 2014. In addition, a minimum savings target of €130 million has been set in areas such as procurement, drugs and agency costs in 2015 and, in a welcome new development, further savings that...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Hospitals Funding (16 Apr 2015)

Leo Varadkar: Budgets vary from hospital group to hospital group and from individual hospital to individual hospital. All hospital groups and hospitals have had an increase in their budget allocation in 2015 over 2014. What we have not done is allow them to incorporate their entire overrun last year into their base for this year. This is very different. We cannot have a situation where hospitals...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Hospitals Funding (16 Apr 2015)

Leo Varadkar: No-----

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Hospitals Funding (16 Apr 2015)

Leo Varadkar: They are included in the report which clearly the Deputy has not read.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Hospitals Funding (16 Apr 2015)

Leo Varadkar: It is clear to me that somebody compiled a briefing note for the Deputy, but he has not read the HSE's PAR for January.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Hospitals Funding (16 Apr 2015)

Leo Varadkar: If he had read it, he would know that attendances at emergency departments were down in January compared to January in the previous year. The numbers of emergency and elective admissions were down. Despite this, there were problems with overcrowding. There were additional staff and an additional spend. That is not acceptable.