Results 22,341-22,360 of 49,836 for speaker:Stephen Donnelly

Ceisteanna Eile (Atógáil) - Other Questions (Resumed).: Hospital Services (31 Mar 2022)

Stephen Donnelly: I thank the Deputy for raising this very important issue. I fully appreciate how sickle cell disease and thalassemia can place a substantial medical, social and financial burden on patients and their carers. There are some positive developments in terms of services for children but more needs to be done in the transition for adults. Children can access services provided by...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Departmental Policies (31 Mar 2022)

Stephen Donnelly: The national implementation and monitoring committee specialist group on women's mental health was established by my Department in August last year at the request of the national steering committee. The purpose of this specialist group is to advise the committee on implementation of the following recommendation from the Sharing the Vision implementation plan : The Department of Health...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Departmental Policies (31 Mar 2022)

Stephen Donnelly: I fully concur with the Deputy's comments on the Minister of State, Deputy Butler. She has been doing a fantastic job and we really are putting women's health front and centre. We launched a strategy document approximately three weeks ago and every Member should have received a copy in his or her pigeon hole by now. I encourage colleagues to take a look at that strategy, which takes a...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Hospital Facilities (31 Mar 2022)

Stephen Donnelly: I fully agree with the Deputy's assessment. As he said, Mayo University Hospital and Sligo University Hospital are fantastic hospitals but they are under pressure and need additional investment in beds, in their workforces and in diagnostics. As he also correctly said, the hospitals are only as good as the networks and the ecosystems within which they work. That is where Ballina really...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Hospital Facilities (31 Mar 2022)

Stephen Donnelly: I thank the Deputy. As he rightly said, though I am not sure we will get to the question, he has consistently raised the issue of Belmullet. He and I have discussed there being an active application in for Belmullet as well. I cannot pre-empt the capital appraisal but I would like to see exactly what the Deputy is advocating for, namely, more beds in Ballina, the modular unit moved on very...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Departmental Policies (31 Mar 2022)

Stephen Donnelly: I thank the Deputy for this important question. Providing rapid access to high-quality mental health services and the supports needed is an absolute priority for me, the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, and the Government. I would say that is the case for everybody in this House. Sharing the Vision: A Mental Health Policy for Everyone was published in June 2020 and is our national mental...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Ukraine War (31 Mar 2022)

Stephen Donnelly: I fully agree. Women and children in the main are arriving in Ireland, fleeing a horrific and illegal war in Ukraine, and it is essential that they receive all the health and social care supports that they need. A huge amount of work is ongoing between my Department, the HSE, other Departments and non-government agencies to ensure access to the services they require. This includes access...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Ukraine War (31 Mar 2022)

Stephen Donnelly: The short answer is "Yes". This is something I discussed when I met the Ukrainian ambassador. We have many qualified healthcare professionals here. We have an amazing group of Ukrainian clinicians here already. We have been working with them to try to send humanitarian supplies back to Ukraine. A lot has been done there and we will continue to work with the Ukrainian community already...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Ukraine War (31 Mar 2022)

Stephen Donnelly: I will get an up-to-date report. I understand that there has been extensive engagement. As Deputy Burke rightly points out, we must have a process whereby the qualifications are verified. We are talking about a highly developed country with a highly developed healthcare system. My assumption is that they will be qualified to a very high level. The Irish Medical Council will be involved...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Hospital Facilities (31 Mar 2022)

Stephen Donnelly: I thank the Deputy for raising the question. I acknowledge his ongoing advocacy and work for Ballina Hospital. I very much look forward to meeting the Deputy in the hospital soon and meeting healthcare workers and management there to look at what more can be done in future with respect to ongoing provision for services. Ballina is a very important hospital. It is 62-bed hospital...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Health Services Staff (31 Mar 2022)

Stephen Donnelly: It is a reasonable request and one I will bring back to the Department. That is not a problem at all. For various reasons, there is no advice coming to me at the moment in terms of the reimposition of any measure. One reason is that the sublineage BA.2, which accounts for approximately 95% of cases, is so contagious that using population-based measures to push the curve down would need...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Health Services Staff (31 Mar 2022)

Stephen Donnelly: I beg the Leas-Cheann Comhairle's pardon. I just wish to re-emphasise that-----

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Health Services Staff (31 Mar 2022)

Stephen Donnelly: Okay. I will stop.

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Health Services Staff (31 Mar 2022)

Stephen Donnelly: I understand.

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Covid-19 Pandemic (31 Mar 2022)

Stephen Donnelly: I thank the Deputy for this important question. I acknowledge his ongoing advocacy and work on the issue. The Government is committed to ensuring that those suffering from long Covid receive the full support they need. A few months ago, I met patients attending a long Covid clinic in Tallaght University Hospital. Hearing first hand from them about the significant deterioration in their...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Covid-19 Pandemic (31 Mar 2022)

Stephen Donnelly: I accept that the Deputy was told this last September. Since then, a great deal has happened and clinics have been set up. The Deputy will appreciate that, given the immense pressure that our hospital system is under, our healthcare professionals are working as quickly as they can. The interim model of care focuses on two different aspects - post-acute clinics and, after that, long...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Covid-19 Pandemic (31 Mar 2022)

Stephen Donnelly: Regarding the clinical approach, the HSE is using the UK's National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, NICE, guidelines in defining long Covid. The HSE says that long Covid is characterised by symptoms that develop during or after an infection consistent with Covid-19, persist beyond 12 weeks and are not attributable to a different diagnosis. As the Deputy is aware, there is a great...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: National Maternity Hospital (31 Mar 2022)

Stephen Donnelly: All I can do is repeat the position, which is that when I bring the final structure to the Government for approval, it will have multiple layers of protection in place. The Religious Sisters of Charity will have no hand, act, part, role, influence, board membership or anything else in the new structure. That is simply not going to happen. The Deputy is correct. There is genuine concern...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: National Maternity Hospital (31 Mar 2022)

Stephen Donnelly: The work on the enabling structures has already commenced. Much work has already happened on the carpark. Much work has been done on a pharmacy. On the process, I want to bring this to the Government soon. I imagine we will have a rigorous debate. I am happy to bring it to the Joint Committee on Health to tease it out there as well. There is a great deal of interest. What I want to...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Health Services Staff (31 Mar 2022)

Stephen Donnelly: I thank the Deputy for the question. I was not sure from the question, as initially tabled, whether the Deputy was talking about medical graduates or health and social care graduates. I will try to cover all of them in line with his introductory remarks. As he has quite rightly said, recruitment of qualified health and social care graduates, medical graduates, and nursing and midwifery...