Results 13,281-13,300 of 45,510 for speaker:Simon Harris

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Hospital Accommodation Provision (26 Nov 2019)

Simon Harris: I said very clearly that I have not met anybody involved with the development of the proposal. Senator Reilly has indeed mentioned this proposal to me. I am well aware of it because it is very visible, with a number of people promoting it. I have not had any meetings with anyone involved in the development of the proposal. Senator Reilly has mentioned it to me. It is not for me to speak...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: General Practitioner Services Provision (26 Nov 2019)

Simon Harris: I assure the Deputy that I do not consider our engagement with the GP bodies to be done. I very much consider the measures we have taken in recent months to be about initial sustainability after a number of difficult years for GPs. They did not just all sign up; they went out and voted in a ballot that they thought this was a good deal. We are providing significantly more funding and not...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: General Practitioner Services Provision (26 Nov 2019)

Simon Harris: I do not disagree with some of the comments the Deputy has made. However, I need to be clear that as Minister I have brokered an agreement with GP representative bodies and will restore every cent that was removed in capitation fees during the recessionary years by 2023. The agreement will provide more than that as well. It is providing additional funding that GPs sought for rural areas;...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Healthcare Professionals (26 Nov 2019)

Simon Harris: I thank the Deputy for her question. It raises queries in respect of doctors in general, both GPs and consultants. I will try to take them both. I have outlined a number of the measures in respect of general practice. In the interests of time, I will not elaborate on them, other than to say we reached significant agreement on contractual reform and service development in May this year in...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Primary Care Centres Staff (26 Nov 2019)

Simon Harris: I thank Deputy O'Reilly for the question. The development of community and primary care services is a key priority for the Government and primary care centres support this goal by providing a setting in which a range of health professionals can deliver better care, closer to people's homes in their local communities. Data, as requested in the question, on the number of staff working in...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Primary Care Centres Staff (26 Nov 2019)

Simon Harris: The Deputy's comments are reasonably fair, except that perhaps they miss out on one point. For the first time we are now beginning to map out the actual requirements in each of the new regional health organisations. As the Deputy is aware, we will be setting up the six new regions to slim down the HSE nationally and to devolve more to the regions in line with the Sláintecare report....

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Primary Care Centres Staff (26 Nov 2019)

Simon Harris: I agree with Deputy O'Reilly. I have had conversations with the HSE about that and it is clear in its mandate in that regard. Deputy O'Reilly used the word "disingenuous" and I do not wish to use it back, but perhaps she is choosing not to listen to what I said in that regard. We got funding in last month's budget to hire 1,000 additional people in the community. We are now carrying...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: General Practitioner Services Provision (26 Nov 2019)

Simon Harris: I thank Deputy Harty. As of 1 November, there are 22 vacant General Medical Services, GMS, general practitioner posts nationwide. These vacancies account for less than 1% of all GMS panels. The HSE is actively recruiting to fill the vacancies referred to by the Deputy in Newmarket-on-Fergus and Macroom, and is considering available options with the local community in Milltown. I believe...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Hospitals Building Programme (26 Nov 2019)

Simon Harris: I thank the Deputy for his question. In line with best international practice, it is the policy of the Government and Oireachtas, as set out in the national maternity strategy, that stand-alone maternity hospitals will be co-located with acute adult hospitals. We should not have stand-alone maternity hospitals anymore. Project Ireland 2040, our capital plan, provides €10.9...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Hospitals Building Programme (26 Nov 2019)

Simon Harris: Unfairly.

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Hospitals Building Programme (26 Nov 2019)

Simon Harris: The phrase "fairly or unfairly" is pretty loaded because one believes the accusation is either fair or unfair.

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Hospitals Building Programme (26 Nov 2019)

Simon Harris: As Minister for Health, I believe it is very fair. I hope that if the Deputy were in my position, he would adopt this approach also, such that we will not press "Go" on the building of the new national maternity hospital at the St. Vincent's campus until all the issues, including that of the religious orders leaving and all those associated with governance, are resolved and the hospital is...

Ceisteanna (Atógáil) - Questions (Resumed) - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Hospitals Building Programme (26 Nov 2019)

Simon Harris: It is a very Dublin-centric question because the Deputy keeps on leaving out poor old Limerick. I am sure Deputy O'Dea would not be happy with that. We do intend to co-locate the four maternity hospitals, including the one in Limerick. To answer the Deputy's question bluntly, Holles Street is the first in the queue. That is our intention. I hope, subject to the criteria I have set out...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Ambulance Service (26 Nov 2019)

Simon Harris: Ambulance turnaround times provide the time interval from ambulance arrival time at a hospital, to when the ambulance crew declares readiness to accept another call. The performance target for 2019 is that 95% of all ambulances have an interval of less than 60 minutes from arrival at the ED to when the ambulance crew declares readiness to accept another call. As of September 2019, 87.3% of...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Emergency Departments Waiting Times (26 Nov 2019)

Simon Harris: The hospital system is currently operating at close to full capacity. The number of patients attending Emergency Departments continues to increase year on year. HSE figures show that for the first ten months of 2019, the number of patients attending Naas Hospital decreased by 1%, however, the number of attendances of patients over the age of 75 increased by 6% compared to the same period in...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Occupational Therapy Waiting Lists (26 Nov 2019)

Simon Harris: I acknowledge that the current time to access Occupational Therapy services in North Dublin, and indeed nationally, can be too long and that this may cause anxiety for parents and patients who are seeking to obtain services. The fact that people are waiting too long to access therapy services such as OT is a reflection of the historical under-investment in the primary and community...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Emergency Departments Waiting Times (26 Nov 2019)

Simon Harris: The hospital system is currently operating at close to full capacity. The number of patients attending emergency departments continues to increase year on year. HSE figures show that for the first ten months of 2019, the number of patients attending Galway University Hospital increased by 4.1% and the number of attendances of patients over the age of 75 increased by 7.9% compared to the same...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Primary Care Centres Provision (26 Nov 2019)

Simon Harris: I propose to take Questions Nos. 54, 344 and 348 together. I am pleased to be able to inform the Deputy that the development of the Primary Care Centres in Arklow and Rathdrum is being progressed. I know that there has been some concern around the development of Arklow Primary Care Centre given the decision by the original preferred bidder not to proceed with the project. However, I am...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Emergency Departments Waiting Times (26 Nov 2019)

Simon Harris: The hospital system is currently operating at close to full capacity. The number of patients attending Emergency Departments continues to increase year on year. HSE figures show that for the first ten months of 2019, the number of patients attending Beaumont Hospital increased by 0.9% and the number of attendances of patients over the age of 75 increased by 7.1% compared to the same period in...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Ambulance Service (26 Nov 2019)

Simon Harris: Ambulance turnaround times provide the time interval from ambulance arrival time at a hospital, to when the ambulance crew declares readiness to accept another call. The performance target for 2019 is that 95% of all ambulances have an interval of less than 60 minutes from arrival at the ED to when the ambulance crew declares readiness to accept another call. As of September 2019, 77.6% of...