Results 8,821-8,840 of 11,702 for speaker:Colm Burke

Seanad: Health and Social Care Professionals (Amendment) Bill 2018: Second Stage (17 Oct 2018)

Colm Burke: I thank the Minister for bringing forward the legislation, which is very welcome. There is a need for regulation and I have come across it quite a bit in recent years. Certain areas not covered by this are still not regulated and I acknowledge the Minister is also working on these areas. It is important that we make sure everyone who provides a professional service has gone through a...

Seanad: Health and Social Care Professionals (Amendment) Bill 2018: Second Stage (17 Oct 2018)

Colm Burke: Next Tuesday.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: New Standard Operating Procedure for Assessment of Need under the Disability Act 2005: Discussion (Resumed) (17 Oct 2018)

Colm Burke: I thank the witnesses for their presentations. I apologise for missing some of the meeting. I was in the Seanad dealing with the availability of therapeutic services for children with autism in a school. The Minister for Health had come to the House to deal with the queries I had on the matter. One of the responses he gave me was that a review is being carried out that is supposed to be...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: New Standard Operating Procedure for Assessment of Need under the Disability Act 2005: Discussion (Resumed) (17 Oct 2018)

Colm Burke: This is in the southern region. It was contained in reply to a Commencement matter I received this morning. It stated:HSE disability services is currently engaged in a major reconfiguration of its existing therapy resources for children with disabilities into multidisciplinary, geographically based teams as part of its national programme on progressing disability services for children and...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: New Standard Operating Procedure for Assessment of Need under the Disability Act 2005: Discussion (Resumed) (17 Oct 2018)

Colm Burke: Has better delivery with the existing resources been examined, as well as blips in the system? Overall, the HSE has taken on an additional 12,000 people in three years, a significant number of people. However, we are still finding waiting lists like this. In my dealings with the HSE, I have found there is meeting after meeting but, 18 months later, there is no real progress. Why does that...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: New Standard Operating Procedure for Assessment of Need under the Disability Act 2005: Discussion (Resumed) (17 Oct 2018)

Colm Burke: Has the association looked for meetings?

Seanad: Order of Business (16 Oct 2018)

Colm Burke: In respect of events in the past week, particularly the budget, over the past four to five years there has been a growth in employment and a resulting inflow to the Exchequer. There are benefits for every taxpayer. I have done an analysis of a married couple with two children and one earner with an income of €50,000, and find their net gain through reduction in income tax is...

Seanad: Order of Business (16 Oct 2018)

Colm Burke: -----on how we go forward as an island. A very relevant section of that debate is the fact that we want to have a united Ireland, and we should work towards that. It is important, now more than ever, that we do not become more divided. If Brexit goes the way some UK politicians want, that is exactly what will happen. Sinn Féin could play a part in making sure that division does not...

Seanad: Health Service Executive (Governance) Bill 2018: Committee Stage (16 Oct 2018)

Colm Burke: I welcome the Minister to the House and I welcome this Bill. I always believed that the HSE should have a board and welcome this change in how the HSE should be managed into the future. We need a proactive board that is comprised of people that have business or legal expertise, which I have said previously. Major decisions are made on a day-to-day basis and, therefore, it is important that...

Seanad: Health Service Executive (Governance) Bill 2018: Committee Stage (16 Oct 2018)

Colm Burke: Yes. Patient advocates should have a background in legal, financial or HR management thus adding to the expertise of the board. That aspect would be useful and should be kept in mind. That is why I believe the composition of the board should not be tied to any one group of people.

Seanad: Health Service Executive (Governance) Bill 2018: Committee Stage (16 Oct 2018)

Colm Burke: I agree technically with what Senator Devine is saying. The only reason it might arise is if there was a structure set up for something within the health services that needed to be separated out from the HSE but where it would be important that the chief executive of the HSE would also sit on that board. That is the only context. Take the national children's hospital for instance. The...

Seanad: Health Service Executive (Governance) Bill 2018: Committee Stage (16 Oct 2018)

Colm Burke: Next Tuesday.

Seanad: Commencement Matters: Hospital Waiting Lists (10 Oct 2018)

Colm Burke: I thank the Minister of State for taking the time to deal with this issue. I am concerned about the waiting time in having cataract operations performed and accessing the required expertise to deal with eye problems, particularly for elderly persons. In the past six months I have received many queries about the waiting list and waiting time for cataract operations, particularly in Cork....

Seanad: Commencement Matters: Hospital Waiting Lists (10 Oct 2018)

Colm Burke: I thank the Minister of State. I note the figures to which he referred. Unfortunately, the people who have been in contact with me have not benefitted under outsourcing. It is in that context that I raised the question. How are people selected to receive treatment under the NTPF? How are they prioritised? Is it based on the period of time they have been waiting or on decisions made by...

Seanad: Health Service Executive (Governance) Bill 2018: Order for Second Stage (10 Oct 2018)

Colm Burke: I move: "That Second Stage be taken now."

Seanad: Health Service Executive (Governance) Bill 2018: Second Stage (10 Oct 2018)

Colm Burke: I welcome the Minister. The legislation is a welcome development. I disagreed with the abolition of the board some years ago because I believed it was not the best way forward. I am delighted that the board will be re-established. I served on the board of the Port of Cork for ten years and found it to be a great experience. The board was comprised of people from various backgrounds and...

Seanad: Health Service Executive (Governance) Bill 2018: Second Stage (10 Oct 2018)

Colm Burke: Next Tuesday.

Seanad: Public Health (Alcohol) Bill 2015: [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil] Report and Final Stages (10 Oct 2018)

Colm Burke: I welcome the Bill, which has now gone through the Lower House. I thank the Minister for staying with it. One of the health issues that has been highlighted is that up to 30% of those attending any accident and emergency department on any night are there because of excessive use or abuse of alcohol. One of the problems that we must face up to is that while we are very quick to criticise the...

Seanad: Public Health (Alcohol) Bill 2015: [Seanad Bill amended by the Dáil] Report and Final Stages (10 Oct 2018)

Colm Burke: I thank the Minister, his staff and the Department for staying with this matter. The Bill was introduced in the Seanad on 11 December 2015. The third anniversary of its introduction is approaching and there has been a long series of debates in both Houses. The legislation is welcome but I accept what my colleague, Senator Lombard, said about Northern Ireland and the important point of...

Seanad: Mental Health (Capacity To Consent To Treatment) Bill 2018: Second Stage (10 Oct 2018)

Colm Burke: I welcome the Minister of State and thank the Senators for introducing this Bill. As someone who has introduced a number of Private Members' Bills here, I am aware of the time and effort that it takes to get it to draft stage and introduced here. I thank them for the work they have done, which is appropriate as it is World Mental Health Day. We need to give more time and effort to the...