Seán Fleming (Laois, Fianna Fail)
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203. To ask the Minister for Health the accident and emergency departments in hospitals throughout the country in respect of which reports or plans have been drafted regarding changing the services available in these departments; the status of such plans and reports in draft or in final form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [44555/17]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The Smaller Hospitals Framework defines the role of smaller hospitals and outlines the need for smaller hospitals and larger hospitals to operate as Hospital Groups. It identifies the activities that can be performed in smaller, or Model 2, hospitals in a safe and sustainable manner, including extended day surgery, selected acute medicine, a local injuries service, a large range of diagnostic services, specialist rehabilitation medicine and palliative care. In developing our smaller hospitals, as set out in the Smaller Hospitals Framework the first and over-riding concern is the safety of patients. Through continued progress in the implementation of Hospital Groups, hospitals are starting to work together to support each other, providing a stronger role for smaller hospitals in delivering less complex care and ensuring that patients who require true emergency or complex planned care are managed safely in larger hospitals. The Smaller Hospitals Framework focused in particular on nine hospitals.

The Dublin Midlands Hospital Group has been working for some time on a draft plan for a new model of clinical service delivery at Portlaoise Hospital which takes account of the need to develop services at Portlaoise in the context of developing the model of service provision for the entire Hospital Group. The draft plan has been submitted to my Department and, as with all draft plans or reports, it is now under detailed consideration. Once there is an agreed position on the draft plan, there will be further engagement with all interested parties to ensure that the needs of patients, staff, the local and wider community are addressed.

The Deputy may also wish to note that the final report of the Trauma Steering Group is under consideration in my Department, given that Emergency Departments are one of the elements in a trauma care pathway that goes from prevention through to rehabilitation and the report considers their services in that context. However, it is important to be clear that major trauma patients represent only a very small proportion of total Emergency Department activity and, having regard to past media reports on trauma services, that the report is not about closing Emergency Departments or diminishing services.