Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein)
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1530. To ask the Minister for Health the status of recommendation 8.1 of the National Cardiovascular Health Policy 2010-2019; the detail of evidence based guidelines and standards that have been agreed; the detail of performance indicators and reporting structures that have been established; the way these have been met to date; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28785/17]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The cardiovascular policy acknowledged the role of evidence based guidelines in the development of services. The policy itself recommended the adoption of the 2007 ESC Clinical Practice Guidelines which have now been updated and revised. International evidence was also used in relation to the provision of acute hospital services for cardiovascular disease.

In relation to the broader issues of guidelines and standards, clinical effectiveness is considered as a key component of patient safety and quality. Clinical effectiveness incorporates the utilisation of quality assured National Clinical Guidelines, National Clinical Audit and general clinical practice guidance. This is a quality improvement approach which promotes cost-effective healthcare that is evidence-based with subsequent improved clinical decision making and clinical outcomes.

The Irish clinical effectiveness agenda is led by the National Clinical Effectiveness Committee (NCEC) which is a Ministerial committee of key stakeholders including patients. Its role is to prioritise and quality assure to the level of international methodological standards a suite of National Clinical Guidelines and National Clinical Audit, prioritised, as significant for the Irish healthcare system. National Clinical Audit and National Clinical Guidelines, quality assured and recommended by NCEC for implementation in the Irish health system provide robust evidence-based approaches to underpin or define systems of service or models of care as appropriate. They assist in developing and monitoring the improvement and standardisation of service delivery. Since 2013, the NCEC has published 14 National Clinical Guidelines in the areas of clinical deterioration, cancer and palliative care, hospital acquired infections and chronic diseases. A further 14 are in development as new or updates of existing guidelines. The National Clinical Effectiveness Committee (NCEC) prioritised and quality assured its first national clinical audit the Major Trauma Audit, which the Minister launched in December 2016. The NCEC, in November 2015, published the Standards for Clinical Practice Guidance setting out the standards for development of clinical guidance such as policies, procedures, protocols and guidelines. This has been followed by the HSE's Framework for utilisation of these NCEC Standards.

Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein)
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1531. To ask the Minister for Health the status of recommendation 8.2 of the National Cardiovascular Health Policy 2010-2019; the progress to date on developing a comprehensive cardiovascular health services information system; the detail of systematic data collection methods and analytic standards; if coordinated collation, analysis and evaluation of data has been ensured; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28786/17]

Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein)
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1532. To ask the Minister for Health the status of recommendation 8.3 of the National Cardiovascular Health Policy 2010-2019; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28787/17]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 1531 and 1532 together.

As these matters relate to patient information issues they have been referred to the Health Service Executive for attention and direct reply to the Deputy.

Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein)
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1533. To ask the Minister for Health the status of recommendation 8.4 of the National Cardiovascular Health Policy 2010-2019; the detail of the national adult and child surveys conducted to date to establish health profiles in adults and children; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28788/17]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Regarding recommendation 8.4 of the cardiovascular policy, a new annual Healthy Ireland Survey commenced in 2014 to enhance data collection and monitoring capacity to track progress in achieving targets to evaluate the success of Healthy Ireland. The Survey provides an up to date picture of the nation’s health with a robust and credible baseline set of data on a range of health behaviours, including those relevant to cardiovascular heath. The Department is now in a position to report credibly on a range of issues which have a significant impact on health outcomes, as well as being able to provide reliable and current data to fulfil a number of international reporting requirements. The first Healthy Ireland Survey was published in 2015, a second in 2016 and the work on a third wave is well advanced with publication expected in October 2017.

These data are now being used to inform current and future policy direction, programme development and implementation.

The Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) survey is a WHO (European) collaborative study. Participating countries cooperate on survey content, methodology and time, and an international protocol is developed. The Health Behaviour in School-aged Children Trends Report explores the trends in the health and wellbeing of children in Ireland between 1998 and 2014. The study has been collecting data from school-aged children aged 10-17 years since 1998. The most recent data collection took place in 2014. Previous studies were undertaken in 1998, 2002, 2006 and 2010.

The Trends Report describes the self-reported health status of children over time in relation to key indicators: health behaviours, health outcomes and the contexts of their lives.

Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein)
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1534. To ask the Minister for Health the status of recommendation 8.5 of the National Cardiovascular Health Policy 2010-2019; the number of audits which have taken place of cardiovascular networks to assess volume and quality of service delivery; the way these have aided in service planning; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28789/17]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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As this is a service matter, it has been referred to the Health Service Executive for attention and direct reply to the Deputy.

Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein)
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1535. To ask the Minister for Health the status of recommendation 8.6 of the National Cardiovascular Health Policy 2010-2019; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28790/17]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Since the publication of the Cardiovascular Policy in 2010, an e-Health strategy was approved by Government in 2013 and a Knowledge and Information Strategy was published by Health Service Executive in 2015. A number of strategic e-health programmes are being progressed including the Individual Health Identifier and the development of business case for a national Electronic Healthcare Record.

The Health Identifiers Bill was published in 2013 and enacted in 2014. Since enactment, necessary follow-up legislative measures under the Act have been taken, as required, to facilitate the practical and phased implementation of the Health Identifier Project. The latest of these measures was the introduction of further commencement provisions and the making of Regulations, at the end of May, allowing for accessing the register of individual health identifiers and the initial deployment of health identifiers in the regulated manner envisaged in the Act.

A revised and expanded General Scheme of a Health Information and Patient Safety Bill was approved by Government in November 2015 and published on the Department's website. That legislation was the subject of further Pre-Legislative Scrutiny, in December 2016, by the Oireachtas Committee on Health. The Committee has now forwarded its report to the Minister and the Department is currently considering the points raised by the Committee so as to respond fully.

Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein)
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1536. To ask the Minister for Health the status of recommendation 8.7 of the National Cardiovascular Health Policy 2010-2019 on the establishment of a national group representative of stakeholders to determine priorities for research and health technology in cardiovascular care; the frequency with which this group has met since the publication of the policy; the outcomes and recommendations from this group, in addition to current projects; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28791/17]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The Health Research Board, in line with the recommendation, coordinates the priorities for research in conjunction with key stakeholders such as academics, service providers and policy makers.

In relation to the research being carried out in conjunction with the Health Research Board, the Board has supported a number of awards conducting research into cardiovascular health. Cardiovascular health research is supported through a wide variety of funding instruments ranging from Summer Student projects, Investigator Led Projects through to a Stroke Clinical Trials Network awarded in 2014 to support the conduct of multi-centre clinical trials.

Examples of cardiovascular research include:

- In 2012 we supported Professor Rose Ann Kenny with an ICE Award entitled “Effecting change in cardiovascular health of older Irish adults: rapid translation of cardiovascular health research findings into policy and practice in a recession”;

- In 2011 we supported Dr Andrew Smyth with a NSAFP award entitled “Sodium and Potassium Intake and Risk of Cardiovascular and Chronic Kidney Disease”.

This is complemented by other types of assessment such as health technology assessment (HTA). In 2014 the Government granted approval for the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) to undertake a HTA of a public access defibrillation programme (PAD) for Ireland because there were a number of questions that needed consideration before designing a public access defibrillation programme. Following a Public Consultation in October 2014, the HIQA Board approved a Report and set of recommendations for the Minister. The Health Technology Assessment (HTA) examined the implication of establishing a national public access defibrillation (PAD) programme in Ireland to increase survival from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). It estimated the clinical and cost effectiveness of a range of PAD configurations.