Results 27,921-27,940 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

Written Answers — Department of Health: Legislative Measures (18 Nov 2014)

Leo Varadkar: As the Deputy is aware the Regulatory Impact Analysis (RIA) Guidelines are intended to provide assistance to government officials conducting RIAs in respect of legislative proposals. The RIA carried out in connection with the Public Health (Standardised Packaging of Tobacco) Bill 2014 is available on the Department of Health’s website at . Officials in my Department consulted the...

Written Answers — Department of Health: National Drugs Strategy Implementation (18 Nov 2014)

Leo Varadkar: In line with the National Drugs Strategy, the Health Service Executive (HSE) has developed a national treatment and rehabilitation service that provides drug free and harm reduction approaches for problem substance users. The HSE provide a variety of drug treatment interventions to reduce drug-related harm and which encourage problem substance users to engage with, and avail of such...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Medicinal Products Licensing (18 Nov 2014)

Leo Varadkar: The Minister for Health has no proposals to amend the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Act or to revisit the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution. The Health Products Regulatory Authority (HPRA) is the competent authority for the regulation of medicines in Ireland. Medicinal products can be placed on the market in Ireland only after a marketing authorisation is granted by the HPRA...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospitals Data (18 Nov 2014)

Leo Varadkar: As this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly. If you have 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 Waiting Lists (18 Nov 2014)

Leo Varadkar: The National Waiting List Management Policy, A standardised approach to managing scheduled care treatment for in-patient, day case and planned procedures, January 2014,has been developed to ensure that all administrative, managerial and clinical staff follow an agreed national minimum standard for the management and administration of waiting lists for scheduled care. This policy, which has...

Written Answers — Department of Health: HSE Staff Remuneration (18 Nov 2014)

Leo Varadkar: A total of 85 business cases have been received from the HSE seeking the approval for individual pay levels in excess of the salary scales on a red circle personal to post holder basis. Further information was sought on a number of these cases and my Department is in the process of reviewing all the information received. No decisions have been made to date.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Waiting Lists (18 Nov 2014)

Leo Varadkar: 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 patient's condition warrants an earlier appointment, he or she would be in the best position to take the matter up with the consultant and hospital involved. As this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Services (18 Nov 2014)

Leo Varadkar: While Naas General Hospital experiences overcrowding in the Emergency Department from time to time, I am assured by the HSE that every effort is made to admit patients to in-patient beds based on clinical need as soon as possible. Compared to the baseline year of 2011, there has been 1,717 fewer patients on trolleys at Naas year to date in 2014. The hospital has appropriate escalation...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Staff (18 Nov 2014)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 360 to 362, inclusive, together. I have asked the HSE to respond to the Deputy directly on this matter. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and they will follow up the matter with them.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Ambulance Service Response Times (18 Nov 2014)

Leo Varadkar: As this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly. If you have 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: Patient Transfers (18 Nov 2014)

Leo Varadkar: I have asked the HSE to respond to the Deputy directly on this matter. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and they will follow up the matter with them.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Staff Data (18 Nov 2014)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 370 and 371 together. I have asked the HSE to respond to the Deputy directly on this matter. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and they will follow up the matter with them.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Staff Recruitment (18 Nov 2014)

Leo Varadkar: I have asked the HSE to respond to the Deputy directly on this matter. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and they will follow up the matter with them.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Substance Misuse (18 Nov 2014)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 380 and 390 together. Government policy in relation to drugs emphasises the need to provide opportunities for people to move on from illicit drug use to a drug-free life, where that is achievable. However, different people in various circumstances may require different approaches to treatment and support. Methadone maintenance treatment is a critical...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Accident and Emergency Services Provision (18 Nov 2014)

Leo Varadkar: As this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly. If you have 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: Health Services Staff (18 Nov 2014)

Leo Varadkar: It is important that newly qualified doctors can be retained and measures are in train to support NCHD and consultant recruitment and retention. A Working Group was established and chaired by Professor Brian MacCraith of DCU, to carry out a strategic review of medical training and career structures last year. Under its terms of reference the Group made recommendations earlier this year aimed...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Health Services Staff (18 Nov 2014)

Leo Varadkar: On average each year, undergraduate nurse programmes in Ireland produce circa 1,500 graduate nurses. Nurses intending to practice outside the jurisdiction of Ireland must seek registration verification from the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland. In the period 2011 to 2013, the following numbers of new graduate Nurses have requested verification in each respective year; 216, 234 and 264....

Written Answers — Department of Health: Food Safety Authority Investigations (18 Nov 2014)

Leo Varadkar: The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) has advised me that the safety of aspartame has been comprehensively evaluated by international scientific experts including the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), the EU Scientific Committee on Food (SCF), the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives and the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA). These expert committees...

Written Answers — Department of Health: HSE Procurement (18 Nov 2014)

Leo Varadkar: Anybody who wishes to make a submission to the HSE should direct their correspondence to the Office of the Director General. The Deputy will be aware that the HSE has submitted a business case to my Department and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform to procure a new integrated financial management system for the health sector to replace the legacy financial systems in use...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Accident and Emergency Departments Waiting Times (18 Nov 2014)

Leo Varadkar: The Department and the HSE both believe that trolley waits are an unacceptable feature of the Irish health care system. This feature must be addressed. Figures for November 14 show that compared to the baseline year of 2011, there are 32.0% fewer patients on trolleys, equivalent to 25,182 patients. However compared to 2013, there are 3.5% more patients on trolleys. This is equivalent to...