Ciarán Cannon (Galway East, Fine Gael)
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645. To ask the Minister for Health if he will consider as a matter of priority appointing a new Chief Pharmaceutical Officer to his Department who will be responsible for overseeing the development of policy and strategy, national oversight of medicine supply, pharmacy regulations and maximising the potential of the community pharmacy sector to achieve better patient outcomes. [60711/22]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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The Department of Health has a number of registered pharmacists among its staff and continues to work with key Stakeholders such as the Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland (PSI) and the Irish Pharmacy Union (IPU) to ensure that pharmacy matters are accorded appropriate attention and consideration.

Currently there are no active proposals to develop a Chief Pharmacist Role in the Department of Health. However, the Department is engaging with Stakeholders and the sector, including the IPU, in order to hear from them and afford them the opportunity to outline their position in relation to such a role.

The Department welcomes all opportunities to assure patient care and is open to exploring all avenues to promote and recognise the valued role of a pharmacist and the future of pharmacy in Ireland.