Jack Wall (Kildare South, Labour)
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Question 182: To ask the Minister for Health and Children the procedures involved for a town (details supplied) in County Kildare to secure an after hours doctor service considering the expanding population of the town; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35837/07]

Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)
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Out of hours co-operatives allow general practitioners to put in place arrangements to provide services to their patients, while their surgeries are closed in the evenings, on weekends and bank holidays. The development of GP co-operatives is in line with the overall health service policy of strengthening primary care services and ensuring that to the greatest extent possible, people's care needs are met in the primary care setting.

Out of hours co-operatives are now in place in all Health Service Executive (HSE) areas, providing coverage in all or in part of all counties. In 2007, almost €37 million is available to the HSE to fund the operation of GP out of hours services. This figure does not include the fees of the participating doctors.

As the Health Service Executive has the operational and funding responsibility for this service, it is the appropriate body to provide the information sought by the Deputy. My Department has therefore requested the Parliamentary Affairs Division of the Executive to arrange to address this matter and to have a reply issued directly to the Deputy.

Jack Wall (Kildare South, Labour)
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Question 183: To ask the Minister for Health and Children the position of an application for mobility aids by a person (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35838/07]

Jimmy Devins (Sligo-North Leitrim, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy's question relates to the management and delivery of health and personal services, which are the responsibility of the Health Service Executive under the Health Act 2004. Accordingly, my Department has requested the Parliamentary Affairs Division of the Executive to arrange to have this matter investigated and to have a reply issued directly to the Deputy.

Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)
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Question 184: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if she will provide an updated report on the health repayment scheme which is due to close at the end of December 2007 including the number of applications, the number of cases which have been resolved and where payment has been made; the amount of awards which have been made to date; her Department's estimates of the total moneys which will be paid; the number of cases under appeal; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35861/07]

Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)
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The Health Repayment Scheme was launched in August 2006 and the HSE has informed my Department that as of 7th December 2007 over 33,000 claim forms have been received. 5,346 payments totalling over €105.8m have issued and 8,320 offers totalling over €160m have been made.

The HSE has indicated that based on the number of valid applications received to date, the estimated total of the amount of money repaid will be approximately €380m. The costs of administering the repayment scheme will be additional to this amount.

The Health Repayment Scheme Appeals Office has advised my Department that as of the 7th December 2007 the total number of people who have indicated their intention to appeal under the health repayment scheme is 1,959. However, of this figure 895 appeal forms have actually been received.

Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)
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Question 185: To ask the Minister for Health and Children the information she has received from the Health Service Executive in relation to the ending of embargoes on staff recruitment throughout the HSE organisation and in particular if she has received reports in relation to the position of HSE workers returning from career breaks who have been prevented from resuming their careers; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35862/07]

Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)
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The current pause on the recruitment of additional staff is a temporary measure initiated as part of the HSE financial break-even plan. Of course, in any instance where a critical or essential vacancy arises it may be filled through redeployment of existing staff by the Line Manager or re-assignment of responsibilities based on assessment of priority need.

Notwithstanding this, it has been recognised that there are some circumstances where appointment of staff may be necessary in frontline services. Accordingly, a process has been put in place by the HSE to evaluate, monitor and approve requests for derogation from the general recruitment pause. A small group has been established including a representative of the National Hospitals Office, PCCC and other Directorates and this group meets regularly to consider such applications.

Of the applications for derogation received to date, 860 w.t.e.s have been approved where posts have been identified as critical to service delivery.

I have been advised by the HSE that the recruitment pause will continue for December 2007 and the current arrangement will be reviewed prior to the end of the year. It is intended that a robust employment control framework will continue to be applied to services in 2008.

I have also been advised by the HSE that career breaks are granted under the terms of the Career Break Scheme as set out in the HSE Terms and Conditions of Employment. Employees applying for a career break are normally required to sign that they accept these terms and conditions. Under the provisions of the scheme, "if a suitable vacancy does not exist at the date of the termination of the career break, an employee is guaranteed re-employment within twelve months, i.e. an unpaid period of up to twelve months could ensue upon termination of the date of the career break."

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick East, Labour)
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Question 186: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if her attention has been drawn to the situation in the midlands where patients in need of breast scans have been referred to Portlaoise, Tullamore and Mullingar hospital only to be told the service is no longer available; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35872/07]

Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)
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The review of mammograms at the Midland Regional Hospital, Portlaoise is complete. A report on the review will be published by the Health Service Executive (HSE) after any individual identified in it has been offered the opportunity to comment, as is the normal legal requirement. The suspension of mammography services at Portlaoise continues pending the publication of the report. The HSE has advised my Department that women in the area are currently being referred for mammography to St. Vincent's Hospital, Dublin.

Arising from the designation of eight cancer centres nationally and in order to comply with the National Quality Assurance Standards for Symptomatic Breast Disease, the HSE has directed a number of hospitals, including the Midland Regional Hospital, Tullamore and the Midland Regional Hospital, Mullingar with very low case volumes to cease breast cancer services. The National Hospitals Office has already planned the redirection of this symptomatic caseload. The HSE has advised my Department that women in these areas are currently being referred to St. Vincent's Hospital and the Mater Hospital, Dublin. The HSE has also advised that the new referral patterns have been advised to all Consultants and GPs in the region.

The decisions of the HSE in relation to four managed cancer control networks and eight cancer centres will be implemented on a managed and phased basis. The HSE has designated St. James's Hospital and St. Vincent's Hospital as the two cancer centres in the Managed Cancer Control Network for the HSE Dublin Mid Leinster region, which includes the Midland Regional Hospitals at Tullamore, Portlaoise and Mullingar.