Colm Burke (Cork North Central, Fine Gael)
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1707. To ask the Minister for Health if consideration will be given to a public consultation process as part of the National Cardiac Services review; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20714/22]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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The National Review of Specialist Cardiac Services commenced in January 2018 under the Chairmanship of Professor Phillip Nolan and a Steering Group formed from nominations of interested stakeholders representing medical, professional/technical staff, nursing and patient representatives. Public consultation was an integral part of the review process.

The aim of the Cardiac Services Review is to achieve optimal patient outcomes at population level with particular emphasis on the safety, quality and sustainability of the services that patients receive, by establishing the need for an optimal configuration of a national adult cardiac service. This aligns with the Sláintecare reform programme. In terms of scope, the National Review covers scheduled and unscheduled hospital-based services for the diagnosis and treatment of cardiac disease in adults.

The Steering Group most recently met on 24/01/2022 and the next meeting is planned for May, 2022. The Steering Group is currently working on the development of the proposed recommendations of the draft Report. The implementation process for the National Cardiac Services Review is also being developed as part of the process to finalise the Report.

Colm Burke (Cork North Central, Fine Gael)
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1708. To ask the Minister for Health if consideration would be given in appointing a designated official or unit in his department with the responsibility for national cardiovascular policy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20715/22]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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The National Review of Specialist Cardiac Services commenced in January 2018 under the Chairmanship of Professor Phillip Nolan and a Steering Group formed from nominations of interested stakeholders representing medical, professional/technical staff, nursing and patient representatives.

The aim of the Cardiac Services Review is to achieve optimal patient outcomes at population level with particular emphasis on the safety, quality and sustainability of the services that patients receive, by establishing the need for an optimal configuration of a national adult cardiac service. This aligns with the Sláintecare reform programme. In terms of scope, the National Review covers scheduled and unscheduled hospital-based services for the diagnosis and treatment of cardiac disease in adults.

The COVID-19 Pandemic impacted on the progress of the review during 2020 and into 2021 as the Chair of the National Review has played a key role in the national COVID-19 response as a member of the NPHET and Chair of the Irish Epidemiological Modelling Advisory Group. However, the Cardiac Services Review is now making progress again, and the Steering Group reconvened in September 2021 with a view to finalisation of the Report. The Steering Group most recently met on 24/01/2022 and the next meeting is planned for May, 2022. 

The Steering Group is currently working on the development of the proposed recommendations of the draft Report. The implementation process for the National Cardiac Services Review is also being developed as part of the process to finalise the Report. The Minister will await the Report from the National Review of Specialist Cardiac Services and consider the recommendations before making any further decisions on this matter.

Colm Burke (Cork North Central, Fine Gael)
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1709. To ask the Minister for Health if his Department plans in future national cardiovascular policy to increase the focus on preventing and diagnosing earlier cardiovascular disease; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20716/22]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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The National Review of Specialist Cardiac Services commenced in January 2018 under the Chairmanship of Professor Phillip Nolan and a Steering Group formed from nominations of interested stakeholders representing medical, professional/technical staff, nursing and patient representatives.

The aim of the Cardiac Services Review is to achieve optimal patient outcomes at population level with particular emphasis on the safety, quality and sustainability of the services that patients receive, by establishing the need for an optimal configuration of a national adult cardiac service. This aligns with the Sláintecare reform programme. In terms of scope, the National Review covers scheduled and unscheduled hospital-based services for the diagnosis and treatment of cardiac disease in adults which includes preventative cardiovascular measures.

The COVID-19 Pandemic impacted on the progress of the review during 2020 and into 2021 as the Chair of the National Review has played a key role in the national COVID-19 response as a member of the NPHET and Chair of the Irish Epidemiological Modelling Advisory Group. However, the Cardiac Services Review is now making progress again, and the Steering Group reconvened in September 2021 with a view to finalisation of the Report. The Steering Group most recently met on 24/01/2022 and the next meeting is planned for May, 2022. The Steering Group is currently working on the development of the proposed recommendations of the draft Report. The implementation process for the National Cardiac Services Review is also being developed as part of the process to finalise the Report.

Colm Burke (Cork North Central, Fine Gael)
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1710. To ask the Minister for Health the way that his Department is addressing inequalities in the detection and treatment of cardiovascular disease; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20717/22]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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Cardiovascular disease has been declining as a cause of death in Ireland, in line with trends throughout the Western World.  This trend was reported in 1999 in Building Healthier Hearts, recording that death rates from CHD declined across all ages from the late 1970s through to the 1990s.  This trend was further recorded in Changing Cardiovascular Health, noting that over 30-year period from 1980, age-standardised death rates from diseases of the circulatory system in Ireland had decreased by 67% in those both under and over 65 years of age. This declining trend in Ireland has continued in recent years.

In 2018, the National Review of Specialist Cardiac Services was established by the Minister for Health to review the delivery of cardiac services nationally. The Review seeks to achieve optimal patient outcomes at population level with particular emphasis on the safety, quality and sustainability of the services that patients receive. The National Review covers scheduled and unscheduled hospital-based services for the diagnosis and treatment of cardiac disease in adults. Moreover, the Review considers the delivery of cardiac services nationally with a focus on the current detection and treatments of cardiovascular disease.

The COVID-19 Pandemic impacted on the progress of the review during 2020 and into 2021 as the Chair of the National Review has played a key role in the national COVID-19 response as a member of the NPHET and Chair of the Irish Epidemiological Modelling Advisory Group. However, the Cardiac Services Review is now making progress again, and the Steering Group reconvened in September 2021 with a view to finalisation of the Report. The Steering Group most recently met on 24/01/2022 and the next meeting is planned for May, 2022. The Steering Group is currently working on the development of the proposed recommendations of the draft Report. The implementation process for the National Cardiac Services Review is also being developed as part of the process to finalise the Report.