Geraldine Feeney (Fianna Fail)

I formally second the amendment to the motion. I understood from Professor Hollywood's address to the Joint Committee on Health and Children that he was quite satisfied with the ongoing progress. As the Minister observed in his speech, the radiotherapy service is working well. The unit in Galway will open in January 2005, €80 million has been invested in a facility for Cork and extra consultants are being provided for both of those facilities. As a former member of An Bord Altranais, I should point out that there are 8,000 extra nurses in the system since 1998 and we have created more spaces in the nursing schools in the last five years. It does not make sense therefore that, for example, two nurses should be looking after a large number of patients, as Senator Henry observed.

The Minister has acknowledged in his presentation that there are problems in the accident and emergency service but it is wrong for the Opposition to say that it is a problem throughout the State because it is not. I spoke to the two accident and emergency consultants in Sligo General Hospital this morning. That hospital had no accident and emergency consultants six years ago but has since benefited from the 41% increase in consultants throughout the country. Those consultants are quite happy with the service they provide and I doubt that they are the only consultants in the country who feel that way. I am glad to hear the Minister is concerned about the east coast area, as we all are. The Minister has rightly acknowledged that there are problems there, which require a multidisciplinary type of approach, and he has outlined his strategy in this regard.

I was interested to hear from the two consultants in Sligo that it is at the weekends that overcrowding occurs. We have frequently discussed in this House the phenomenon of weekend drink and drug abuse particularly among young people. These are the people who are taking up precious spaces in accident and emergency departments. Of course they must be treated and they could be any of our sons and daughters. A change in the culture regarding young people's drinking patterns is required. Tax evasion was accepted in this country ten years ago as was drink driving. Today the latter is considered the worst crime of all and is completely frowned upon. This is not entirely a matter for the Minister but some element of it is within his remit. The Joint Committee on Health and Children has just delivered a report, with which Senator Henry was involved, on the problems regarding under age drinking.

I am glad I can make my next point in this House before the Minister. For the last few months I have been holding my breath every time I heard it said that the Hanly report would presage the closure of accident and emergency departments all over the country. As a member of the Medical Council I can say that is rubbish. The Hanly report will ensure that accident and emergency departments remain open. It is part of my duty as a member of the council to inspect hospitals around the country and I have visited accident and emergency departments in counties Clare, Cork, Tipperary, Kildare, Monaghan and Wexford, among others. I was part of a five person group within the council which ruled that those departments should be closed. In the case of one hospital in the Mid-Western Health Board area, we gave it an alternative to closure of the accident and emergency department within six to nine months whereby the CEO of the health board came together with personnel from the Medical Council and medical staff from the hospital to make representations to the Department of Health and Children. That hospital has now been assigned an accident and emergency consultant who is ready to take up that position. The Hanly report is the way to go. Medical people agree that it is the blueprint for the future of medicine in this country and the methodology is second to none.

There are two major hospitals in the North-Western Health Board, Letterkenny General and Sligo General. Letterkenny is ready to appoint a second consultant, for which I thank the Minister. Sligo already has its second consultant and its accident and emergency numbers are under 30,000 and we are happy with that. I was surprised by something Senator Feighan said as he lives only 20 miles from me in Sligo, although it is a different health board area. He spoke about a big black hole and maintained that services had not improved. As I pointed out a few months ago, Sligo General Hospital has a new oncology unit with 14 beds. Our cancer patients no longer have to leave the county or the region and they are absolutely delighted. The Minister is correct that the benefits are beyond belief in some areas of the country. Yes I am speaking for my own area and I am better qualified than anybody else to make this case——