Results 2,681-2,700 of 3,665 for speaker:Seán Power

Departmental Programmes. (22 Nov 2005)

Seán Power: Government must make decisions and it is open to advice from a number of areas, including the Opposition. If the Deputy has something constructive to propose rather than criticism, we will listen to him.

Departmental Programmes. (22 Nov 2005)

Seán Power: Target Health has a number of functions in advising Government, which it does on a regular basis. The Government takes all advice on board before making decisions.

Departmental Programmes. (22 Nov 2005)

Seán Power: Government decided to enter negotiations with the drinks industry on advertising and deal with it in the manner outlined. This will have the same effect as legislation and if it is not working we will resort to legislation. At present the drinks industry and the advertising industry are conscious of the difficulties alcohol creates and are prepared to take measures to deal with this. The...

Departmental Programmes. (22 Nov 2005)

Seán Power: Deputy Gormley can choose his words but should not try to put words into my mouth. I did not state what Deputy Gormley suggests. A strategic task force on alcohol made certain recommendations. There are several ways of achieving a result and legislation is not necessarily needed.

Departmental Programmes. (22 Nov 2005)

Seán Power: In this instance we have entered into agreement with the relevant——

Departmental Programmes. (22 Nov 2005)

Seán Power: ——members. Nothing could be further from the truth than to suggest the Government is cosying up to the drinks industry. This was seen last year when the ban on smoking in the workplace was introduced.

Leaders' Questions. (22 Nov 2005)

Seán Power: What about the Eircom shareholders?

Illegal Drug Dealing in Hospitals. (22 Nov 2005)

Seán Power: I am advised by the Health Services Executive that, unfortunately, all hospitals in large urban areas, like most public buildings, face potential risks of drug dealing on their premises. Hospitals work closely with gardaí to minimise such activity and there are protocols in place to alert the Garda where concerns arise. I understand the Deputy's question relates to media reports about...

Illegal Drug Dealing in Hospitals. (22 Nov 2005)

Seán Power: Hospitals are no different to other public buildings in that there is always the potential for drug dealing on the premises or in the surrounding area. In this instance a report appeared in the newspaper and St. James's Hospital refuting the allegations of systematic drug dealing within the hospital. The Deputy has said that information came from a staff member. If any staff member has that...

Obesity Related Diseases. (22 Nov 2005)

Seán Power: The Deputy is aware that the description of metabolic syndrome is of fairly recent origin, having first been described by Dr. Gerald Reaven in 1988. The syndrome has a set of risk factors, which include abdominal obesity; a decreased ability to process glucose, or insulin resistance; dyslipidemia, or unhealthy lipid levels; and hypertension. In a recent joint statement, the American Diabetes...

Obesity Related Diseases. (22 Nov 2005)

Seán Power: I agree that prevention is better than cure. Lifestyle modifications, such as weight loss to achieve a desirable weight, increased physical activity among young and old people and healthy food habits including reduced intake of saturated fat and cholesterol are the primary means of intervening to manage long-term and short-term metabolic risk factors. The report of the task force on obesity,...

Obesity Related Diseases. (22 Nov 2005)

Seán Power: That is what it is.

Obesity Related Diseases. (22 Nov 2005)

Seán Power: We are trying to create a society that encourages people to eat healthily and be physically active. The Government intends to take a number of measures to bring that about.

Obesity Related Diseases. (22 Nov 2005)

Seán Power: The Deputy expanded on his question to cover a number of areas. From his side of the fence, our reception to the idea of the provision of such screening programmes might appear lukewarm, but we are serious about the policies we are implementing. Some people have been critical of the Government for not dealing with the issue of obesity in the past, but last week it put its money where its...

Care of the Elderly. (22 Nov 2005)

Seán Power: It is a priority of mine to support people to stay in their homes and communities and move away from the practice of placing people in residential care as a first option. This is the expressed wish of the majority of older people. I would like to see the further development of home care packages for older people. The Mercer report on the future financing of long-term care in Ireland, which...

Care of the Elderly. (22 Nov 2005)

Seán Power: We want to make the practice of placing older people in residential care the last option. All the studies clearly show that people are much happier in their own homes and communities among family and friends. Patients also recover more quickly from illness when they are in that environment. The home help facility has been a wonderful success and has made a great difference to the quality of...

Care of the Elderly. (22 Nov 2005)

Seán Power: I cannot give Deputy Twomey an answer on the floor of the House but, as I stated, a number of pilot schemes that have been in operation around the country have worked very well. A team is coming together in this regard. I accept this is a general question but I am not medically qualified and the medical situation of a person will have to be taken into account. We are seeking to expand the...

Care of the Elderly. (22 Nov 2005)

Seán Power: I think Deputy Ó Caoláin will agree it is important that we ensure those people providing help are fit to carry out that important work. I am aware of a company that recently set up here and has recruited a number of staff to provide a home help service. It appears it had no difficulty recruiting staff and that many people were available.

Care of the Elderly. (22 Nov 2005)

Seán Power: We would like to remove some of the bureaucracy that exists. If it is decided that somebody is in need of a home care package we would like the decision to be implemented as quickly as possible.

Variant CJD Incidence. (22 Nov 2005)

Seán Power: There have been two confirmed cases of new variant CJD in Ireland to date. The first concerned a woman who had lived in England for 20 years. Given the long incubation period of variant CJD, the probability is that the disease was not contracted in Ireland. The second concerned a 24 year old Dublin male. The probability is that he contracted it before the current very strict controls on the...