Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Social Democrats)
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119. To ask the Minister for Health if he will honour his predecessor's commitment to provide five additional clinical practice tutor posts for radiation therapy to increase the number of college places for students in the coming academic year; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26419/24]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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Health and Social Care workforce planning and ensuring an appropriate pipeline of suitably qualified healthcare professionals in Ireland is a top priority for the Government.

Department of Health officials engage on an ongoing basis with colleagues in the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science and the Higher Education Institutions to ensure that we train enough graduates with the skills necessary to support the delivery of health and social care services. An additional five Radiation Therapy places were secured as part of the additional 662 student places that have been provided in the Higher Education Sector on health-related courses in the academic year 2023/24. Clinical placements will be provided in line with undergraduate college places identified.

Minister for Health is supportive of increasing the availability of clinical placements to match additional student training places, and his department has allocated funding and resources to demonstrate this. In 2023, there was an increase of 132 student places in the HSCP disciplines. In 2023, the Department of Health provided €1m funding to support the provision of clinical placements for the Health and Social Care Professions through 10 WTE funded posts to be filled in 2024. This funding is in proportion to the increase in student numbers in these professions.

Department of Health officials are working in collaboration with the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, National HSCP Office in the HSE and Higher Education Institutions to ensure the provision of clinical placements to support the expansion of student places. The Minister for Health has committed that clinical placements will be provided in line with the number of additional undergraduate college places identified by the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science.