Results 41,721-41,740 of 49,836 for speaker:Stephen Donnelly

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Use of Private Hospitals (2 Jun 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: We understand but essentially they were private patients. Their insurance companies were going to pay for their care and treatment and we stepped in and said we would pay for it instead, if they can get it. My final question is probably more for the IMO but also for the IHCA. It is about solutions. We now have a perfect storm. We have lost 20% of beds in our public hospitals by going...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Use of Private Hospitals (Resumed) (2 Jun 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: I would like to thank our witnesses. I will start with two questions. It was exactly the right decision at the start, but the secondary rationale, which was around maintaining capacity, has not worked at all. It should have been ended as soon as that became clear. At the moment, we are essentially using public money to treat private patients in private hospitals by private consultants. My...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Use of Private Hospitals (Resumed) (2 Jun 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: That really does not answer the question. I do not think there are not too many private patients in the country looking to waive their private patient status so they can become public patients and not get any treatment. The question I ask is why not let the private patients continue to be paid for by the insurance companies, which is what would have happened, leaving all of the money to be...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Use of Private Hospitals (Resumed) (2 Jun 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: I understand that. The question I am asking is "why?". Mr. Breslin is restating what happened, which is everyone was to be treated as a public patient. For people who get Covid, that decision makes perfect sense. For all of the ongoing treatment, if insurance firms are willing to pay for private patients and maybe they do not get priority during the crisis, I am all for that. Why use...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Use of Private Hospitals (Resumed) (2 Jun 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: That might have been the concern people had but that is exactly what has happened. That is the entire point of my question. That became exactly what happened. Public money is being used. However, we are running out of time. Can I get an answer to my second question? Did the Department engage with the hospitals to look at ending this contract earlier than June given the vast human cost...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Use of Private Hospitals (Resumed) (2 Jun 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: To be clear, nobody asked the private hospitals if they would be willing to continue until the end of June?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Travel Restrictions (2 Jun 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: As I have thanked Mr. Breslin and his team many times, I take the opportunity to thank Mr. Burgess and the staff at the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. I also thank Ms Graham and the staff of the NTA. I know their people have been working around the clock and have put in extraordinary work and I want to recognise that work. This question is for Mr. Burgess. I will start with...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Travel Restrictions (2 Jun 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: Could we not charter flights to get them out?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Travel Restrictions (2 Jun 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: In the interests of time, there is one more question I want to ask so I will stop Mr. Burgess there if I may. This really is a question for whoever the responsible body is. I have had a lot of people contacting me asking what the situation is on incoming travel. We understand that there are no restrictions on people going between the North and the South, but if people are flying in from...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Travel Restrictions (2 Jun 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: When should this measure be relaxed?

Covid-19 (Health): Statements (27 May 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: I will share time and will take the first five minutes. Yesterday, hundreds of pages of correspondence between Nursing Homes Ireland and the State were released. They paint a very dark picture of staff having to use painter's overalls and goggles from local schools to protect themselves; of four-week delays in testing; and of no voice on NPHET or even on the subgroup looking at nursing...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Departmental Correspondence (27 May 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: 524. To ask the Minister for Health if he will provide the correspondence between the Chairperson of the HSE, the CEO of the HSE, the Secretary General of his Department and him pertaining to Covid-19 testing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7176/20]

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Congregated Settings: Nursing Homes (26 May 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: I thank Mr. Taylor and Mr. Daly for coming and for their work in the past few months advocating on behalf of older people and residents and staff within the nursing homes. What has happened is tragic and heartbreaking. It has happened in a lot of other countries, although notably there are countries that managed to act decisively and early and avoid the outbreaks we have seen in our nursing...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Congregated Settings: Nursing Homes (26 May 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: In the interests of time, I will ask a specific question. The Minister and I have discussed the matter repeatedly in this Chamber. The answer he keeps giving me is that nursing homes and their residents and staff do not need any representation because they now have regular access to him. We are still in the middle of this crisis and are planning for a second wave. Does Mr. Daly believe...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Congregated Settings: Nursing Homes (26 May 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: I thank Mr. Daly. Does Mr. Taylor believe that, in dealing with this crisis, older people now have sufficient voice in the various fora they need to have it - politically, administratively and in the State sector?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Congregated Settings: Nursing Homes (Resumed) (26 May 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: I thank our witnesses for attending today. It seems clear given the scale of clusters, outbreaks and fatalities in nursing homes that opportunities were missed to support the nursing homes and prevent contagion into them. Various vectors into the nursing homes have been discussed today, including staff being discharged from hospitals, for example. I believe one of the reasons is that...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Congregated Settings: Nursing Homes (Resumed) (26 May 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: Given that HIQA has said the HSE has stated it does not understand the private nursing home sector, it is fair to think the Department of Health does not either as it is a further step removed. The only people on the National Public Health Emergency Team are civil servants from the Department of Health, HSE officials, a few virologists and HIQA. HIQA representatives were the only people in...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Congregated Settings: Nursing Homes (Resumed) (26 May 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: Does Mr. Quinn accept it was HIQA's role to raise the crisis with the public health officials on NPHET so they could react? This was part of why it was there.

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Congregated Settings: Direct Provision Centres (26 May 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: I thank our guests for their contributions. I will focus on the current level of provision and the safeguards in place. Regarding vulnerable people, I note from Ms Buckley’s opening statement that has been deemed to be those over 65 years old rather than 70. Taking those vulnerable to Covid-19, therefore, as those people over 65 and those with underlying conditions, what is the...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Congregated Settings: Direct Provision Centres (26 May 2020)

Stephen Donnelly: That is good to hear. There was also a situation where people sharing rooms but not in the same family were deemed to be of the same household. They were asked not to interact with other households. In reality, however, there are shared bathrooms in some cases, as well as shared cooking facilities and communal areas. How is that being done in practice in light of the very tight spaces...