Results 19,681-19,700 of 26,793 for speaker:David Cullinane

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Review of Scope and Structure of Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Act: Engagement with Minister for Health (8 Dec 2021)

David Cullinane: I will make some quick points. I thank the Minister for his response to the earlier questions. We have covered a lot of ground. It would have been better, as I said, had the independent chair been appointed prior to or in tandem with the roll-out of the first phase. I appreciate the Minister's response but for greater coherence, it would have been much better had the chair been involved...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Review of Scope and Structure of Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Act: Engagement with Minister for Health (8 Dec 2021)

David Cullinane: What happens if recommendations that flow from the operation of the Act have policy implications? I presume that the Minister's response will be that it is a matter for the Oireachtas and the Government and I know that the focus will be on the operation of the Act. Is it possible that there may well be recommendations that require a policy shift?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Review of Scope and Structure of Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Act: Engagement with Minister for Health (8 Dec 2021)

David Cullinane: We should receive a detailed note on precisely what each of the maternity hospitals are providing and also on what are deemed partial services. I return to the issue of conscientious objection, which the Minister raised, and geographical barriers to access. I understand the law is very clear here. Individuals may object conscientiously; institutions may not. That also needs to be part...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Ambulance Services: Discussion (15 Dec 2021)

David Cullinane: I welcome Mr. Kenny and everybody else on the call. I want to start with the issue of staff burn-out as highlighted in Mr. Kenny's opening statement. It is an issue Mr. Kenny and I have discussed several times. What is the current level of staff burn-out? How bad is it and how difficult or challenging is it for paramedics across the board? I ask Mr. Kenny for a brief overview in that regard.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Ambulance Services: Discussion (15 Dec 2021)

David Cullinane: What I have been hearing over the last few months is that there are issues around the long-distance calls, especially at the end of the shift, which can create real problems and that shifts are lengthy, breaks are short and staff are not able to take breaks at an appropriate time. Is that prominent right across the board?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Ambulance Services: Discussion (15 Dec 2021)

David Cullinane: Mr. Kenny mentioned the working groups. There are two main issues, one of which is the capacity review. There have been a number of capacity reviews in recent times, including a capacity versus analysis review which commenced in July on which we will engage with the National Ambulance Service and the HSE later. The capacity review has to look at increasing the staff complement, increasing...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Ambulance Services: Discussion (15 Dec 2021)

David Cullinane: In terms of the late finishes, is Mr. Kenny saying that this working group or all five working groups will be concluded this week and there will be recommendations in all of them or some of them?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Ambulance Services: Discussion (15 Dec 2021)

David Cullinane: When the working groups have finalised their work, the health committee would like to see the details of that and get copies of those reports. Is Mr. Kenny satisfied that issues regarding breaks, late finishes, late call-outs and late discharges at the end of shifts will be covered sufficiently in the recommendations from the working groups?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Ambulance Services: Discussion (15 Dec 2021)

David Cullinane: What is meant by the rules of engagement?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Ambulance Services: Discussion (15 Dec 2021)

David Cullinane: Then that is the relationship between the call centre or dispatch centre and the ambulance paramedics.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Ambulance Services: Discussion (15 Dec 2021)

David Cullinane: Okay. In the previous contribution Mr. Kenny spoke about some of the call-outs not being calls that an ambulance crew should be responding to. There is a need for a public awareness campaign in that regard. How much of a difficulty or challenge is it, especially when there are major pressures on the system, if ambulance paramedics are being called out to calls they should not be called to...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Ambulance Services: Discussion (15 Dec 2021)

David Cullinane: I have two final questions.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Ambulance Services: Discussion (15 Dec 2021)

David Cullinane: Absolutely, and I echo that. I have two brief questions before finishing. I will refer back to Mr. Kenny. There are the capacity reviews and there is a staff complement of just over 2,200 in the National Ambulance Service. Comparisons were made to Scotland, which some would argue is the best comparison that can be made to our service. That comparison would lead to a very substantial...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Ambulance Services: Discussion (15 Dec 2021)

David Cullinane: Would Mr. McEvoy concur with that? Is there a similar problem or issue in Dublin Fire Brigade?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Ambulance Services: Discussion (15 Dec 2021)

David Cullinane: I have a number of questions to ask. I possibly will not get to all of them because our time is limited. I will direct each question at who best and appropriate to take it. If we can avoid multiple answers to the same question, that would help, because time is limited. My first question is for Mr. Morton. Recently, the Minister for Health, speaking in the Dáil in response to a...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Ambulance Services: Discussion (15 Dec 2021)

David Cullinane: To put that in context, the key performance indicator target and the HIQA standard that has been set for Echo calls is 80% and the figure that was reached was 71%, while for Delta, the target is 70% and the figure reached was 40%. Mr. Morton is saying that is down to the levels of increased demand on the system as well as not having the capacity he talked about earlier. Is that fair?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Ambulance Services: Discussion (15 Dec 2021)

David Cullinane: I understand that. Mr. Morton might forward to the committee a month-by-month breakdown of the average response times for Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, Delta and Echo. That would be helpful for our future deliberations on this issue. Turning to the capacity issue, a number of capacity reviews have been commissioned. Mr. Woods referred to a 2015 NAS baseline capacity review. I read last night...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Ambulance Services: Discussion (15 Dec 2021)

David Cullinane: Why are there so many reviews? One issue I have picked up from speaking to paramedics is that there are not enough staff. Mr. Morton stated there is a 30% deficiency in staff and capacity throughout the system. As far back as 2015, there was the baseline capacity review, then there was the 2020 review of fleet and equipment and now there is the latest review. Mr. Woods indicated that more...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Ambulance Services: Discussion (15 Dec 2021)

David Cullinane: Let us assume that is the figure. How many staff are trained yearly?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Ambulance Services: Discussion (15 Dec 2021)

David Cullinane: Some of that figure would include replacements, given that people retire. How long would it take us at that rate to get to the figure of 600, notwithstanding the ongoing review, which might call for even greater capacity?