Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 117: To ask the Minister for Health and Children her views on figures from the Public Health Alliance that the death rates for all cancers among the lowest occupational class is over twice as high for the highest class, it is nearly three times higher for strokes, four times higher for lung cancer, and six times higher for accidents; the way she intends to combat such inequalities in health outcomes here; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35451/06]

David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 136: To ask the Minister for Health and Children the targets her Department has set to reduce the disproportionate burden of ill health that lower income groups suffer as detailed in Quality and Fairness, A Health System for You; the initiatives in place to reduce these health inequalities; the success of same; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35453/06]

Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I propose to take Questions Nos. 117 and 136 together.

One of the key measures of health status is premature mortality, major causes of premature mortality in Ireland being circulatory diseases, cancer, accidents and injuries. For all of these, there is a social class gradient, with those in the lowest socio-economic group being the worst off. Likewise, at the beginning of life, health status indicators such as infant mortality and low birth weight highlight the adverse situation of the lowest socio-economic group. In addition, it is known that some groups such as Travellers have lower life expectancy than the general population. Smaller scale studies also show higher levels of ill health among homeless people, drug users and prisoners. Mental illness is also a significant cause of morbidity, with the burden again falling most heavily on the lowest socio-economic group.

The health sector is strongly committed to implementing a range of measures aimed at tackling and reducing these health inequalities. Social inclusion-relevant aspects of existing health strategies and plans feature in the current National Action Plan against Poverty and Social Exclusion (NAP inclusion) 2003-2005, in the recently negotiated social partnership agreement, Towards 2016, and in Ireland's National Report on Strategies for Social Protection and Social Inclusion (NSSPI) 2006-2008.

The National Anti-Poverty Strategy (NAPS) is the main vehicle through which the Government's response to the problems of poverty and social exclusion is being channelled. The Government's 2002 review of the NAPS Building an Inclusive Society sets out a number of targets aimed at reducing health inequalities. These include targets to reduce the gap in premature mortality between the lowest and highest socio-economic groups for circulatory diseases, for cancers and for injuries and poisoning; to reduce the gap in low birth weight rates between children from the lowest and highest socio-economic groups; and to reduce the gap in life expectancy between the Traveller Community and the whole population. My Department is currently working to develop an appropriate set of shorter-term targets that will reflect progress towards these longer-term outcomes. It is anticipated that this work will feed into the 2007 HSE Service Plan and the forthcoming NAP inclusion 2006-2008 process.

In June this year I launched the Cancer Control Strategy 2006 prepared by the National Cancer Forum. The Strategy recognises that there is a need for a consistent focus on risk factors for cancer, incidence of cancer, access to services, and outcome from services to help to reduce health inequalities between various groups. The Strategy recommends that the HSE should put in place arrangements to monitor inequalities in cancer risks, cancer occurrence, cancer services and cancer outcomes. The policy indicators proposed in the Strategy will provide an important means of maintaining a policy focus on cancer inequalities.