Results 1,861-1,880 of 8,649 for speaker:Seán Crowe

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (29 Nov 2022)

Seán Crowe: €500,000 is not enough.

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions (29 Nov 2022)

Seán Crowe: €500,000 is not enough.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Business of Joint Committee (23 Nov 2022)

Seán Crowe: Before we go to the main item on today’s agenda, the minutes of the committee meetings of 15 and 16 November 2022 have been circulated to members. Are they agreed? Agreed.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health (Amendment) Bill 2022: Department of Health (23 Nov 2022)

Seán Crowe: The purpose of the meeting is for the joint committee to discuss the general scheme of the health (amendment) Bill 2022, which has been referred to us for pre-legislative scrutiny. The committee is required to report on this by 21 December. To enable the committee to consider this matter further, I am pleased to welcome representatives from the Department of Health, Ms Laura Casey, principal...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health (Amendment) Bill 2022: Department of Health (23 Nov 2022)

Seán Crowe: I thank Ms Casey. I invite members of the committee and other Members to discuss this matter with the witnesses.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health (Amendment) Bill 2022: Department of Health (23 Nov 2022)

Seán Crowe: Deputy Durkan does not seem to be available so I ask Deputy Colm Burke to come in.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health (Amendment) Bill 2022: Department of Health (23 Nov 2022)

Seán Crowe: We are talking about the most vulnerable, that is, children, the elderly and disabled people. I suggest that be covered.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health (Amendment) Bill 2022: Department of Health (23 Nov 2022)

Seán Crowe: The Senator is still there.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health (Amendment) Bill 2022: Department of Health (23 Nov 2022)

Seán Crowe: The Bill covers the most vulnerable people in society, that is, children, people with disabilities and the elderly. One of the big challenges which is going on in accident and emergency departments at present, is that relatives have no access. Many of the hospitals are locked down because of the pandemic. That is a key piece of information. I imagine that the majority of complaints come...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health (Amendment) Bill 2022: Department of Health (23 Nov 2022)

Seán Crowe: On finding suitable placements, it has been stated that designated facilities come under the Health Act. There has not really been a focus on this in the discussion. There are big challenges when it comes to finding places for people, in particular for children and those in the disability sector. That is the view of many of the families who have tried finding a place for their children....

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health (Amendment) Bill 2022: Department of Health (23 Nov 2022)

Seán Crowe: I am still confused. Let us say a holiday home has been used quite a number of times for children with special needs because there is nowhere else to put them. If the holiday home is used more than once, does that make it a designated facility? I do not ask my question in an effort to catch out officials.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health (Amendment) Bill 2022: Department of Health (23 Nov 2022)

Seán Crowe: I asked my question on behalf of families who are in that situation and seek supports, etc. One would like to think these children would be safe in such situations. There must be follow-up in terms of inspections and everything else.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health (Amendment) Bill 2022: Department of Health (23 Nov 2022)

Seán Crowe: Deputy Cullinane covered issues concerning head 15 earlier. Ms Casey stated: "Head 15 will introduce a number of offences carrying a proportionate range of targeted penalties to ensure the effective operation of these new tools", which are advance notices, non-compliance notices and urgent orders. What happens if there is no response? Are the penalties proportionate bearing in mind that...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health (Amendment) Bill 2022: Department of Health (23 Nov 2022)

Seán Crowe: Reference was made to the staffing and skills mix. Is there a focus on workforce planning in the Bill? It is a stretch but a major infection vector that was identified was the deployment of agency staff across multiple venues during the pandemic, which meant Covid-19 spread through nursing homes.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health (Amendment) Bill 2022: Department of Health (23 Nov 2022)

Seán Crowe: The other issue that came up during the debate, which may be impacted by the legislation, is the transfer of elderly patients without proper testing. This was another serious problem. In some cases, they were taken out of nursing home or, vice versa, they were transferred from hospital back to nursing home without proper testing. Many of them were infected. Is that covered under the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health (Amendment) Bill 2022: Department of Health (23 Nov 2022)

Seán Crowe: Another area that, again, came up when we talked about weakness was the new integrated community support teams. The importance is that there would be someone available in nursing homes in each area. Is that a key element of the support around this Bill?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: General Scheme of the Health (Amendment) Bill 2022: Department of Health (23 Nov 2022)

Seán Crowe: I appreciate that our witnesses came in this morning. It was very helpful and there was good debate. As a committee, we will have to decide how we will progress the Bill. We are still waiting on different sectors. HIQA is outstanding and we will probably have representatives in for a meeting on this. I thank Ms Casey and her colleagues from the Department for assisting the committee in...

Dublin City Safety Initiatives and Other Services: Statements (17 Nov 2022)

Seán Crowe: We all have a vision of the Dublin we would like to see. It needs to be a safe place. I have never been frightened to go into any area of the city, but I know other people who have been frightened to do so. I know people who are terrified in their own homes every night of the week. It also needs to be a place in which ordinary people can afford to live. I do not think any other speakers...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Business of Joint Committee (16 Nov 2022)

Seán Crowe: The minutes of the three meetings held on 8 and 9 November 2022 have been circulated to members for consideration. Are the minutes agreed? Agreed. Before we begin, I would like to send the solidarity and sympathies of this committee to the family and friends of Vicky Phelan. Ms Phelan was a powerful advocate for women put in the most awful position and will be sorely missed. Her...