Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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Question 189: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children if she will report on the progress of the recently established task force on the accident and emergency crisis; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [15714/06]

Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)
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Tackling the current difficulties with accident and emergency units is the Government's top priority in health. Our objectives are to reduce the numbers waiting for admission, the time spent waiting for admission, and the turnaround time for those who can be treated there and then and do not require admission. I believe that there is a need to build on the accident and emergency action plan and, arising from discussions with the Health Service Executive, a number of proposals have been agreed, including the setting of performance targets for individual hospitals.

The Health Service Executive has developed and circulated a framework for improving accident and emergency services, setting out clearly the proposed approach. The recently-established dedicated task force is overseeing the implementation of this framework. The task force includes accident and emergency consultants, a consultant geriatrician, a respiratory physician, a director of nursing, and a hospital chief executive, as well as full-time representatives from the national hospitals office and primary, community and continuing care services. The task force is supporting individual hospitals in identifying specific problems and addressing them, and working with hospitals to introduce a system of "whole hospital" performance measures to improve the patient's journey not alone through the accident and emergency department but through the hospital system from admission to discharge.