Feargal Quinn (Independent)

Yes, one is certainly concerned about that. There are many different kinds of patient care we can undertake. In the past, we assumed care had to take place in hospital and I am delighted to see the changes that are taking place in that context. I remember an experience I had in the former Hume Street Hospital. Staff at the hospital realised that large numbers of those patients who were attending for dermatology and cancer treatment did not need to be in hospital for an entire week to receive one or two treatments. The switch to a day care system was an enormous operational success because it meant a patient could plan to go to the hospital in the morning, receive treatment at 10 a.m., leave by 12 p.m. and return to work. In previous times, patients had to stay in hospital all week long, particularly if they lived outside Dublin.

I learned of a system that operates in the United States from a man who was a patient there. He had to undergo a very important operation but he did not go into the hospital. He stayed in the hotel beside the hospital and he was brought over by the staff to the hospital for the operation. The cost was much different from what it would have been in Ireland. It also resulted in a hospital bed not being used. There are occasions when good patient care can be provided without necessarily using the traditional costly hospital service.

Confidence is very much needed when a patient enters hospital. Many people are afraid to go to hospital because they think they may contract a disease such as MRSA, which is a major concern currently. I am not sure how the Minister will solve this problem.The Health Service Executive and the Minister are doing everything correctly to succeed against MRSA but they have not succeeded to the extent others have elsewhere. I have huge confidence in Professor Drumm. The support given to him by the Minister needs to be backed up. It is easy to knock someone in charge when something goes wrong. I have confidence in him and he needs to be supported with that confidence.

Those who work in hospitals should be reminded of another aspect of care. I had an accident which required a hospital stay. The chief surgeon, doctors, matron, nurses and other staff came into the ward and approached each bed before we were released. However, they referred to each patient by the disease he or she had, not by name. Sometimes attention needs to be paid to little details such as that. That is an aspect of patient care because when patients go to hospital, they are concerned, nervous, uptight and stressed and little things like that can help.

The Minister is getting the support she needs and the support she is giving Professor Drumm is worthy of everything we can do to support that. I have confidence in her and I have confidence we can achieve what we have set out to do. I welcome her contribution.