Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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527. To ask the Minister for Health if he will extend the Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby Homes to hospitals in which infant deaths occurred and in which the circumstances of the child's death, post mortem and burial were not clarified with the parents; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11494/17]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The Commission of Investigation (Mother and Baby Homes and certain related Matters) comes within the remit of my colleague, the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs.

The Commission of Investigation was established by the Government to provide a full account of the experiences of women and children who lived in Mother and Baby Homes over the period 1922-1998. This followed the establishment of an Inter-Departmental Group by the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs in response to the revelations and public controversy regarding conditions in Mother and Baby Homes.

Communication between a hospital and bereaved parents following the death of a child is a hospital service issue. This is a devastating time for parents. The development of appropriate bereavement care is an important step in the overall development of quality maternity services, and this is recognised in the National Maternity Strategy - Creating a Better Future Together 2016-2026. In that regard, the Deputy may wish to note, that in August 2016, I launched the HSE National Standards for Bereavement Care following Pregnancy Loss and Perinatal Death. These standards seek to ensure that clinical and counselling services are in place to support women and their families in all pregnancy loss situations, from early pregnancy loss to perinatal death. The standards underline the important role that healthcare professionals play in providing a caring and compassionate response to parents, including that of the bereavement specialist teams which will be established in each maternity unit. The HSE National Service Plan 2017 priorities the implementation of a range of improvement actions across all maternity units, based on the new Standards.

In regard to past post mortem practices, the Deputy will be aware of two Reports by Dr Deirdre Madden published by my Department in 2006. The first of these reports "Post Mortem Practice and Procedures" inquired into the policies and practices relating to the removal, retention and disposal of organs from children who had undergone post-mortem examination in the State since 1970. In her report, Dr Madden set out the general facts in relation to paediatric post-mortem practice in Ireland from 1970 to 2000, the way in which information was communicated to parents of deceased children in relation to post-mortem examinations and how these practices might be improved upon for the future.

The second report "Working Group on Post Mortem Practice" considered the application of the recommendations of the first Report to (a) babies who died before or during birth, (b) minors and (c) adults.

Since that time, in March 2012, the Health Service Executive published "Standards and Recommended Practices for Post Mortem Examination Services" and these were circulated to all relevant hospital staff. The overall aim of the standards and recommended practices for post-mortem examinations is to drive high quality services based on best professional practice and current legal requirements.