Brian Hayes (Dublin South West, Fine Gael)
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Question 15: To ask the Minister for Health and Children her view on the Irish Heart Foundation's national audit of stroke care; if the six acute stroke units announced by the Health Service Executive are fully staffed and have enough beds to cater for the full throughput of stroke patients; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [16315/08]

David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael)
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Question 25: To ask the Minister for Health and Children the percentage of hospitals which have transient ischaemic attack services; her plans to improve coverage of same; the number of designated stroke unit beds nationally; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [16225/08]

Mary Upton (Dublin South Central, Labour)
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Question 28: To ask the Minister for Health and Children the plan of action agreed in response to the national audit of stroke care recently published by the Irish Heart Foundation; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [16324/08]

David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael)
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Question 69: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if her attention has been drawn to the Irish Heart Foundation Irish National Audit of Stroke Care published in April 2008; the action she will take as a result; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [16224/08]

Pat Gallagher (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 15, 25, 28 and 69 together.

I welcome the publication of the Irish Heart Foundation National Audit of Stroke Care, which was conducted with the support of my Department.

The report covers the spectrum of care from prevention to treatment and rehabilitation. It has highlighted a number of areas where clinical care and the organisation of stroke services can be enhanced. Last year I established the Cardiovascular Health Policy Group to advise on how to prevent the occurrence of cardiovascular disease and stroke, and improve services for individuals affected by these conditions. I am aware that the Policy Group has, in the course of its work, considered the Audit and will be making recommendations to me in the summer.

My Department has also discussed the issues raised in the Audit with the Health Service Executive and the HSE is already working to enhance acute hospital services for stroke patients. There have been a number of service developments since the stroke audit researchers collected their data. The HSE is currently finalising an evaluation of its current stroke services and will be publishing the results of this in the next few weeks. The evaluation has so far identified a number of hospitals where stroke services have begun to be developed. Dedicated beds for stroke patients are provided in a number of hospitals which do not yet have a dedicated acute stroke unit.

Several hospitals have either on-site rehabilitation beds for stroke patients or have good links to nearby hospitals providing rehabilitation. There have also been developments within the emergency services, with training of EMTs and fast-tracking of patients with suspected stroke in some areas, and plans to extend this to other areas.