Results 1-20 of 1,028,521 for in 'Dáil debates' OR in 'Committee meetings' (speaker:Tom Kitt OR speaker:Gino Kenny OR speaker:Eoin Ó Broin OR speaker:Seán Crowe)

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Business of Joint Committee (8 May 2024)

Seán Crowe: No apologies have been received. Deputy Bernard Durkan is at a select committee meeting and said he will be in and out of this meeting. Before we go to the main item on today's agenda, the minutes of committee meetings on 30 April and 1 May 2024 have been circulated to members for consideration. Are they agreed? Agreed. The purpose of the committee meeting today is to receive an update...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Implementation of Sláintecare Reforms: Department of Health and HSE (8 May 2024)

Seán Crowe: I am pleased to welcome from the Department of Health Mr. Robert Watt, Secretary General, Ms Louise McGirr, assistant secretary, Ms Siobhán McArdle, assistant secretary, and Ms Rachel Kenna, chief nursing officer; and from the HSE Mr. Damien McCallion, chief operations officer, Mr. Liam Woods, national director, organisational change unit, Ms Anne Marie Hoey, chief people officer, Dr....

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Implementation of Sláintecare Reforms: Department of Health and HSE (8 May 2024)

Seán Crowe: That is right, yes.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Implementation of Sláintecare Reforms: Department of Health and HSE (8 May 2024)

Seán Crowe: We said we would focus on that, but not exclusively. We never have.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Implementation of Sláintecare Reforms: Department of Health and HSE (8 May 2024)

Seán Crowe: We would normally give an indication of the area of focus. My apologies. There seems to be some sort of cross-purpose.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Implementation of Sláintecare Reforms: Department of Health and HSE (8 May 2024)

Seán Crowe: We will deal with it in private session. If there are specific questions, the members can focus on those. I call Senator Kyne to lead us off.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Implementation of Sláintecare Reforms: Department of Health and HSE (8 May 2024)

Gino Kenny: My first question is on the elective care programme. How many people are on some form of waiting list at present?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Implementation of Sláintecare Reforms: Department of Health and HSE (8 May 2024)

Gino Kenny: On the elective care programme, which is a good concept, what is the average waiting time for a surgical procedure in the surgical hubs? On average, what is the waiting time for a surgical procedure in these hubs? People contact our office about surgeries that are sometimes not for four or five years. That is not a good timeframe. The concept of the hubs is to address capacity and waiting...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Implementation of Sláintecare Reforms: Department of Health and HSE (8 May 2024)

Gino Kenny: Has any of this been delayed by the recruitment embargo in the past 18 months?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Implementation of Sláintecare Reforms: Department of Health and HSE (8 May 2024)

Gino Kenny: I think I flagged this already with the Department of Health. My next question is about an extensive report by the Health Research Board on the future of the medical cannabis access programme. The MCAP is a good concept but only 55 patients have had access to medical cannabis since it was conceived. That is a very small number of people who can get access via prescription. A clinical...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Implementation of Sláintecare Reforms: Department of Health and HSE (8 May 2024)

Gino Kenny: The HRB report is very extensive, running to more than 200 pages. It recommends that the programme be expanded, particularly to neuropathic pain for which there is quite good evidence. A tiny number of people - 55 - have got access to medical cannabis over four years. The whole idea of the programme was to give people access rather than people having to go to the black market, which is...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Implementation of Sláintecare Reforms: Department of Health and HSE (8 May 2024)

Gino Kenny: Does Mr. Watt agree that having only 55 people benefit from the programme over the past four years is a tiny number?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Implementation of Sláintecare Reforms: Department of Health and HSE (8 May 2024)

Gino Kenny: I understand.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Implementation of Sláintecare Reforms: Department of Health and HSE (8 May 2024)

Seán Crowe: I have a couple of questions. I want to focus on some of the groups we have had in recently. Before I get into that, I have a local issue. We all tend to go down this route. I refer to the importance of Sláintecare, new pathways to care and so on. Two of the witnesses focused on waiting lists. I was told that the waiting lists for audiologist services in Tallaght last year was...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Implementation of Sláintecare Reforms: Department of Health and HSE (8 May 2024)

Seán Crowe: The chair of the Dental Council said it basically does not have teeth. It cannot follow through in relation to it. This is coming from it. It seemed to be a cry for help to our committee. The witnesses can come back on this. I said we would raise some of the issues.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Implementation of Sláintecare Reforms: Department of Health and HSE (8 May 2024)

Seán Crowe: I think the problem is outside the HSE structure. Again, the figures speak for themselves. Some 100,000 children did not receive access to dental care last year. It seems to be a whole area of health we have fallen down on and there clearly needs to be a different focus on it. Another group, Vision Ireland, was in. Again, it talked about a lack of strategy in this whole area. One of...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Implementation of Sláintecare Reforms: Department of Health and HSE (8 May 2024)

Seán Crowe: That is the worry they have. They are worried that this bureaucracy is going to be duplicated.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Implementation of Sláintecare Reforms: Department of Health and HSE (8 May 2024)

Seán Crowe: I just wished to signal that it seems to be a concern of the organisation. I am sure it is replicated with others. I am conscious of time but the Irish Lung Fibrosis Association was in with the committee again. I am conscious that there is a new contract for the supply of oxygen. The organisation was saying it had met with the project manager as part of the process and that people were...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Implementation of Sláintecare Reforms: Department of Health and HSE (8 May 2024)

Seán Crowe: I thank the witnesses for the note we got but it did not really go into the supply issue.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Implementation of Sláintecare Reforms: Department of Health and HSE (8 May 2024)

Seán Crowe: I need to end this part of the meeting. I thank the representatives of the Department of Health and the HSE for continuing to engage with the committee. We look forward to working with them further on these important matters. The meeting is suspended and will resume shortly at 12 noon.