Holly Cairns (Cork South West, Social Democrats)
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427. To ask the Minister for Health the steps he is taking to ensure that Ukrainian medical professionals can register to practise in Ireland. [19159/22]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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As the Deputy will be aware, the Medical Council is the statutory agency responsible for the registration and regulation of doctors in Ireland. In order to protect patients, it has a responsibility to ensure that all doctors registered to practise medicine in Ireland meet the requirements to practise as set out in its legislation. Officials from my Department have been working closely with the Council in recent weeks to examine the ways in which support can be provided to doctors arriving from Ukraine and the Council has established an internal working group to explore and address the issues that arise.

Depending on where a doctor qualified and the type of qualifications they hold, some doctors arriving into Ireland from outside the EU may be required to take a pre-registration exam and an English language exam. These exams look at a number of areas including communication and clinical skills and are an important step to ensure patient safety. The HSE in partnership with various stakeholders are also looking at other options which these doctors can avail of while registration is pending, such as medical translation and access to CPD resources. To date the Council has not received a full application for registration from any of the new doctors arriving in Ireland, however it is directly supporting a number of doctors with queries about the registration process and the requirements.

The Council is working directly with key stakeholders in the HSE, Postgraduate Training Bodies and the Irish Medical Schools Council. Discussions with these partners are ongoing and it is hoped to have a further update in the near future. The President and the CEO of the Medical Council also met with Ambassador Larysa Gerasko and the Ambassador has offered the support of the Embassy in acting as a liaison with Ukrainian authorities to support the registration of Ukrainian doctors in Ireland and also to assist the Council in disseminating information to Ukrainian doctors in Ireland.

Holly Cairns (Cork South West, Social Democrats)
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428. To ask the Minister for Health the payments, benefits and other supports issued by the HSE to which Ukrainian refugees are entitled. [19160/22]

Holly Cairns (Cork South West, Social Democrats)
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433. To ask the Minister for Health the payments, benefits and other supports issued by his Department to which Ukrainian refugees are entitled. [19221/22]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 428 and 433 together.

The Government is committed to delivering a humanitarian response to welcome people fleeing the war in Ukraine and seeking protection in Ireland as part of the EU response and such it is providing the necessary supports to those who have arrived here, as well as the large numbers of further people expected to arrive.

A reception facility at Dublin Airport is staffed by officials from the Departments of Justice, Social Protection, Children, the HSE and other State departments and agencies where needed. It is a one-stop shop to provide people with temporary protection immediately when they arrive, as well as giving them access to social welfare, to accommodation if required, and to care packages and other supports provided by the private sector. The HSE Team are ensuring that Ukrainian arrivals get information on how our health service works, immediate care, prescriptions, and can get started on applying for a medical card. Equivalent arrangements are being implemented by the Government agencies involved at other ports of entry.

It is a priority for the Department and the HSE to ensure that Ukrainians arriving to Ireland are provided with appropriate health and social care services including primary health care services for adults, children and older people, ongoing care of priority medical conditions and vaccination services including for COVID-19 and childhood immunisations. Ukrainian refugees will be able to access the equivalent health services as people who are ordinarily already living here, including Irish citizens.

There is a simplified and streamlined medical card application process for Ukrainians granted temporary protection status with 2692 medical cards issued as of 06/04/22. Translated versions in Ukrainian and Russian are available on the dedicated HSE Ukrainian webpage (Healthcare services for Ukrainian nationals in Ireland - HSE.ie). It is recognised that whilst awaiting their medical card, some individuals may need access to prescription medicines. The HSE has put in place a means to enable reimbursement to pharmacies for such medicines dispensed.

For Ukrainians placed in temporary accommodation, the HSE and local healthcare workers are providing GP and primary care services and connections to more specialist services as needed. i.e. maternity services. In addition, Safety Net are providing GP clinics to facilities located in Dublin and out of hours services are accessible as required.

In conjunction with the National Women’s and Infant Health Programme, a specific urgent referral service at the Rotunda Hospital for pregnant women near term (over 32 weeks) or those who require urgent access is in place. The senior midwife can refer to any maternity unit nationally.

The Inclusion Health Service at CHI Temple Street is being reoriented to assist with the Ukrainian situation in the area.

In collaboration with National Cancer Control programme (NCCP) and the Irish Cancer Society (ICS), a Ukrainian cancer information page on how to access services is live (www.cancer.ie/ukraine). The ICS will be appointing a Ukrainian Cancer Coordinator which Acute Operations will work in close collaboration with.

Refugees can find information and other resources about public healthcare services at www2.hse.ie/services/healthcare-in-ireland/ukrainian-refugees.html. This information is available in Ukrainian, English and Russian.

The above information is provided on the dedicated government webpage for Ukrainian refugees at www.gov.ie/ukraine.