Lynn Ruane (Independent) | Oireachtas source

On amendment No. 1 and the holistic nature of care, the ageing population, especially in respect of methadone, is a very relevant general point about addiction services. I do not know whether access to capital funding comes under the Department historically but not only is the population ageing, access to appropriate community drug services that people avail of is becoming much more difficult. These are not accessible and do not have lifts. This may not be the case in primary care services, if someone is going directly to a GP. However, we still have community drug teams that provide care, which are finding it increasingly hard to meet the needs of an ageing population when it comes to the building and the infrastructure itself.

As far as I understand it, nurse prescribing would not definitely seek to replace the involvement in its entirety of the GP. There could still be a care plan where a GP links in once a month. An individualised care plan could still be created based on what someone's needs are and that could be done in a holistic sense. It is about everyone being able to support the picture as a whole rather than having nurses entirely replace the role of the GP. They would complement each other as necessary as regards people's individual care plans.

I am happy to continue the efforts outside of this debate.