Results 641-660 of 24,635 for speaker:Mary Harney
- Written Answers — Departmental Reports: Departmental Reports (11 Nov 2010)
Mary Harney: The Report of the Review of Radiology Reporting and the Management of GP referral letters at Tallaght Hospital was commissioned by the HSE. It was undertaken by Dr Maurice Hayes and launched and published by the HSE on 4th November 2010. A copy of the Report is available on the HSE website. When the accumulation of the backlog of X-rays in Tallaght hospital became apparent the HSE took...
- Written Answers — Departmental Staff: Departmental Staff (11 Nov 2010)
Mary Harney: At the end of October 2010, there were 430.70 whole time equivalents (WTE) employed in my Department. In addition, a further 46.65 WTEs were employed across a number of offices including the Adoption Board, the Office of the Ombudsman for Children, the Disability Appeals Office and the Health Repayment Scheme Appeals Office. This level of employment represents an overall decrease of 27% since...
- Written Answers — Health Insurance: Health Insurance (11 Nov 2010)
Mary Harney: Charges are levied for private patients availing of private and semi-private accommodation in public hospitals. In most, but not all, cases these charges are paid by private health insurance companies on behalf of their members. At the end of 2009 some â¬92.5 million in such charges was due to the HSE, and a further â¬82.6 million owed to the voluntary hospitals. Charges due include those...
- Written Answers — Medicine Pricing: Medicine Pricing (11 Nov 2010)
Mary Harney: I propose to take Questions Nos. 38 and 49 together. The Government has decided to introduce a system of reference pricing combined with generic substitution of medicines. This will promote price competition and deliver ongoing savings for both the State and for patients. In June, I launched a report which sets out a proposed model for the operation of generic substitution and reference...
- Written Answers — General Medical Service: General Medical Service (11 Nov 2010)
Mary Harney: General Practitioner (GP) out-of-hours co-operatives are an essential part of our primary care services and help to ensure that, to the greatest extent possible, care needs are met in the primary care setting. While there is no obligation on GPs to participate in co-operatives, GPs contracted under the General Medical Services Scheme must make suitable arrangements to enable contact to be...
- Written Answers — Hospital Boards: Hospital Boards (11 Nov 2010)
Mary Harney: The Charter for the Adelaide and Meath Hospital, Dublin, incorporating the National Children's Hospital provides for a Board with 23 members. Six members may be nominated by the Adelaide Hospital Society, six may be nominated by the Church of Ireland Archbishop of Dublin, six members may be nominated by the Meath Foundation, three members may be nominated by the National Children's Hospital,...
- Written Answers — Hospital Staff: Hospital Staff (11 Nov 2010)
Mary Harney: Our Lady's Children's Hospital in Crumlin is the largest tertiary paediatric hospital in the State treating the type of complex cases associated with incidents of drug interactions and allergic reactions. The increasing complexity of cases, allied with the expanding spectrum of therapies for diverse diseases, has highlighted the need to strengthen the level of paediatric immunology services...
- Written Answers — Hospital Services: Hospital Services (11 Nov 2010)
Mary Harney: The Quality and Clinical Care Directorate of the Health Service Executive has established a number of disease specific programmes. These include Asthma, COPD, Heart Failure, Stroke and Diabetes. The approach to these chronic diseases will be to improve quality and access in a cost effective manner. Improving access will involve mandating Primary Care direct access to diagnostics rather...
- Written Answers — Croke Park Agreement: Croke Park Agreement (11 Nov 2010)
Mary Harney: I propose to take Questions Nos. 48 and 78 together. The Public Service Agreement 2010-2014 (the "Croke Park Agreement") provides a framework for public service management and staff to work together to deliver an ongoing reduction in the cost of delivery of public services, while maintaining and improving the quality of services delivered to the public, in return for commitments on pay and...
- Written Answers — Hospital Waiting Lists: Hospital Waiting Lists (11 Nov 2010)
Mary Harney: I propose to take Question Nos. 50 and 55 together. The National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF) is responsible for the collation and reporting of national hospital waiting list data. Patients are placed on the national list only after they have been waiting three months, because many people receive their treatment within three months and, in some cases, with little or no waiting. It is not...
- Written Answers — Health Services: Health Services (11 Nov 2010)
Mary Harney: A system of unique health identifiers that allows for the accurate identification of individuals accessing health and personal social services and providers of such services is important in terms of enhancing and promoting patient safety and quality of care. Provision for the establishment of such a system will be included in the proposed Health Information Bill which is currently being...
- Written Answers — Health Forums: Health Forums (11 Nov 2010)
Mary Harney: Section 42 of the Health Act 2004 provides for the establishment of not more than four Regional Health Forums, the membership of which is composed of members nominated by city and county councils. The Regulations providing for the establishment of the Regional Health Forums - the Health Act 2004 (Regional Health Forums) Regulations 2005 - were made on 12 December 2005 and provided for the...
- Written Answers — Ambulance Service: Ambulance Service (11 Nov 2010)
Mary Harney: As this is a service matter, it has been referred to the HSE for direct reply.
- Written Answers — Departmental Staff: Departmental Staff (11 Nov 2010)
Mary Harney: The information requested by the Deputy regarding the number of social workers employed on a full-time basis in the Health Service Executive is set out in the table below: Numbers (WTE excld. career break) of social workers employed in the HSE only 31/12/2005 31/12/2006 31/12/2007 31/12/2008 Health Service Executive 1,661 1,742 1,814 1,799 Figures include the grade of social worker...
- Written Answers — Departmental Staff: Departmental Staff (11 Nov 2010)
Mary Harney: The Government has made clear that a critical part of its strategy to restore the public finances is to achieve sustainability in the cost of delivering public services relative to State revenues. To help achieve this goal, it will be necessary to restructure and reorganise the public service and to reduce public service numbers over the coming years. This requires that the moratorium on...
- Written Answers — Hospitals Building Programme: Hospitals Building Programme (11 Nov 2010)
Mary Harney: I propose to take Question Nos. 57 and 180 together. The new National Paediatric Hospital is a priority for the Government. The capital spending on it will be protected over the full lifetime of the project. The total estimated cost of the development, including the Ambulatory and Urgent Care Centre at Tallaght, is â¬650 million. This is â¬100m less than a previous estimate because of the...
- Written Answers — Hospital Staff: Hospital Staff (11 Nov 2010)
Mary Harney: Subject to overall parameters set by Government, the Health Service Executive (HSE) has responsibility for determining the composition of its staffing complement. In that regard, it is a matter for the Executive to manage and deploy its human resources to best meet the requirements of its Annual Service Plan for the delivery of health and personal social services to the public. The...
- Written Answers — National Drugs Strategy: National Drugs Strategy (11 Nov 2010)
Mary Harney: As this is a service matter it has been referred to the HSE for direct reply.
- Written Answers — Pharmacy Services: Pharmacy Services (11 Nov 2010)
Mary Harney: Since 1st October 2010, medical card holders are required to pay a 50c charge for medicines and other prescription items supplied to them by community pharmacists. The charges are subject to a cap of â¬10 per month for each person or family. In 2008 only 2.1% of families with medical cards had 20 or more items prescribed to them per month. Should a person or family pay more than â¬10,...
- Written Answers — Hospital Accommodation: Hospital Accommodation (11 Nov 2010)
Mary Harney: The in-patient oncology unit at University Hospital Galway is comprised of 45 in-patient beds. Patients are triaged and assessed weekly and all admissions are based on clinical need in consultation with the treating clinicians. Early last week, the increased demand for beds was such that eleven patients' admissions to these in-patient beds were deferred. These patients have now been...