Joe McHugh (Donegal North East, Fine Gael)
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Question 40: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if she will make a statement on the outsourcing of smear testing to the USA; if she will explain the cervical screening programme plan to initially limit colposcopy treatment to 11 centres; and if she will assure the colposcopy team and people of County Donegal that the colposcopy service at Letterkenny General Hospital will remain permanently; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35360/08]

Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)
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In June 2008 the National Cancer Screening Service (NCSS) awarded the contract for cytology laboratory testing for the national cervical screening programme to Quest Diagnostics. Quest Diagnostics successfully met all the required criteria set out under the procurement process which was open to local and international laboratories. Quest Diagnostics was previously contracted by the Health Service Executive (HSE) to clear significant backlogs of smear tests in the Irish system.

Colposcopy services are an integral part of a population based screening programme. Women who have pre-cancerous cell changes detected by their smear test are referred for colposcopy. The NCSS is making a significant investment to enhance colposcopy services. This will ensure timely access to a quality assured colposcopy service for women who require further investigation.

It is important to ensure that as part of CervicalCheck, women can access colposcopy services within international best practice timeframes, based on adherence to quality assured clinical practice and the achievement of best clinical outcomes for women.

The NCSS has identified 11 colposcopy services to support CervicalCheck initially. The colposcopy service at Letterkenny General Hospital (LGH) has not been identified for initial referrals of women. However, in the interim LGH will continue to provide colposcopy services to women already attending or awaiting colposcopy.

The provision of additional colposcopy services to women in the North West is being examined. The colposcopy service at LGH requires a number of enhancements to meet the quality assurance standards defined by the NCSS. The NCSS is working with LGH and the question of the hospital's future participation in the colposcopy service for CervicalCheck will be considered in this context. Discussions between the hospital and the NCSS are due to take place this week.