Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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551. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the involvement she and her Department have had with the request for Medical Council accreditation from the Royal College of Surgeons, Bahrain; if her attention has been drawn to concerns that have been expressed by Members of the Oireachtas and human rights bodies regarding the hospital environment in which the Royal College of Surgeons, Bahrain students have to complete their placements; her views on these concerns; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6102/15]

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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Section 88(2)(a) of the Medical Practitioners Act 2007 requires that the Medical Council consult with the Minister for Education and Skills before approving, or otherwise, basic medical programmes and the bodies that deliver them. The Act makes clear that my role in relation to this matter is to be consulted and that the ultimate decision regarding approval of programmes of medical education and the providers of those programmes rests with the Medical Council.

On 4 December 2014 I received, in accordance with section 88(2)(a), correspondence from the Medical Council setting out the recommendations of a Committee established to perform the relevant functions under the Act in respect of a number of institutions, including the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, Bahrain.

The Government's position has been articulated by successive Ministers for Foreign Affairs and Trade. Ireland was also one of 47 United Nations Member States who participated in a joint statement at the UN Human Rights Council expressing serious concern regarding the protection of human rights in Bahrain and calling on the Bahraini Government to expedite the implementation of the recommendations received from the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry. The issues involved have also been the subject of detailed consideration by the Oireachtas Committee on Education and Social Protection.

The Government has always sought to draw a clear distinction between the wider human rights situation and the involvement of Irish institutions in the education and training of Bahraini medical personnel. In that regard, I regard the process set out under Section 88 of the Act as a vital part of the quality assurance architecture for medical education and training in Irish institutions, ensuring compliance with relevant national and international standards.

Therefore, while the Government will continue to use all appropriate diplomatic avenues to express its concerns regarding the human rights situation in Bahrain, it was important to ensure that the Medical Council's consultation with me remained focused on the matters which have been properly identified by the Medical Council under both the Act and other relevant national and international standards.

In the context of the above, in responding to the Medical Council, I noted that it was proposed that "the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland Bahrain's six year programme of basic medical education and training should be approved for a period of five years under the terms of Section 88(2)(a)(i)(I) of the Act. This recommendation is made on the grounds that the programme adheres to the rules, criteria, guidelines and standards approved by Council, as specified in Section 88(2)(a) and 88(2)(d) of the Act." I also noted that "The Medical Council Team is satisfied that, while not a separate programme, and therefore not being separately accredited under the Act, the five year programme as delivered by RCSI Bahrain is satisfactory."

I also expressed my expectation that the Medical Council would have had regard to all of the information relevant to its consideration of national and international standards, including relevant legislation and the World Federation for Medical Education's (WFME) Standards in Basic Medical Education. In this regard, I understand that the panel of assessors were given a copy of the Ceartas report outlining that organisation's perspective on the human rights situation in Bahrain.

I also noted my expectation that appropriate engagement would have taken place with the "wider range of stakeholders" envisaged by the WFME in its Global Standards for Quality Improvement in Medical Education: European Specification, including representatives of "academic staff, students, the community, education and health care authorities, professional organisations and postgraduate educators."