Written Answers Nos. 790-810
790. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Health if he will provide details on changes to the long-Covid payment for front-line HSE staff; and if this payment will be continued for a person (details supplied). [29832/24]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
791. Deputy Seán Haughey asked the Minister for Health if his Department will expand the RSV vaccine roll-out to include all babies aged under six months by September 2024 in line with NIAC recommendations; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29876/24]
View answerAs you are aware, the Government recently provided approval for an infant Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) Immunisation Pathfinder Programme which will run between September 2024 and February 2025.
All newborn infants born during the programme will be offered immunisation against RSV after birth on site in Irish maternity hospitals. This immunisation will protect newborn infants when they are most vulnerable to the complications of RSV during the winter period when infection rates are at their highest. The risk is highest in children less than six months of age.
As well as protecting newborn infants, this programme will help maintain health service capacity during this coming winter season. The programme is based on NIAC advice and is a temporary programme put in place as an interim measure pending the outcome of Health Technology Assessments on RSV immunisation currently being undertaken by the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA).
A HTA is a multidisciplinary research process that collects and summarises information about a health technology. The information can cover a range of fields, including clinical effectiveness and safety, cost-effectiveness and budget impact, organisational and social aspects, and ethical and legal issues. The information is collected and presented in a systematic, unbiased and transparent manner.
As well as protecting infants against serious illness, this pathfinder programme also offers the HSE an opportunity to establish working mechanisms and to evaluate the programme.
It is a strategic initiative designed to explore innovative approaches to improving health outcomes within a community or population. Such programmes often serve as pilots or models that, if successful, can be scaled up and replicated in other settings.
The outcome of the HTAs, and learnings from the pathfinder programme once complete, will inform the development of any longer-term programme and future decision making on this matter.
792. Deputy Mark Ward asked the Minister for Health the discussions the HSE has had with the owner of a facility (details supplied) in order for the HSE to take over the running of the facility; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29903/24]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
793. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Health the number of people on the public waiting list for cataract removal; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29906/24]
View answer794. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Health the number of people from Kerry on the public waiting list for cataract removal; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29907/24]
View answer797. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Health the current waiting time on a consultation for cataract surgery in a facility (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29911/24]
View answer798. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Health the current waiting time for cataract surgery in a facility (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29912/24]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 793, 794, 797 and 798 together.
It is acknowledged that many patients are still waiting too long for hospital appointments and treatments.
As part of the multi-annual approach to reducing waiting lists, and just as importantly the length of time that patients are waiting, I published the 2024 Waiting List Action Plan on 27th March. Total funding of €360 million has been provided for the plan this year which sets out 19 Actions across three themes: Delivering Capacity, Reforming Scheduled Care and Enabling Scheduled Care Reform.
The Waiting List Action Plan multi-annual approach, initiated in 2021, encompasses a two-pronged approach of short-term actions to increase capacity and activity in the immediate term, and longer-term reform measures to sustainably reduce and reform hospital waiting lists and waiting times.
The 2024 Plan builds on the work of previous plans which have achieved significant progress in overall waiting list reduction and in addressing long waiting times, against a backdrop of significantly increased demand for scheduled care services. This year’s plan aims to achieve a reduction in the overall number of patients on waiting lists while three of the four overarching targets in the Plan are specifically focused on improving waiting times.
With regard to the information requested by the Deputy concerning cataract waiting lists, the National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF) have advised that there are 5,768 patients on the public waiting list for cataract surgery. Of these, there are 70 patients on the list with an area of residence in County Kerry.
In regard to the length of time patients are on the cataract surgery waiting list in South Infirmary Victoria University Hospital (SIVUH), the NTPF have advised that the total number of patients waiting on that list is 395, of those, 322 patients are waiting between 0 to 6 months and a further 70 patients are waiting between 6 and 12 months. The remaining three patients are waiting outside of those time bands.
The NTPF have further advised that the detail in the outpatient waiting list does not go beyond specialty level, so detail in respect of the number of patients waiting for an outpatient consultation for cataracts is not available separately and would be included in the OPD waiting list for Ophthalmology.
795. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Health the number of people from Kerry who have availed of the Cross Border Directive scheme refund for cataract removal procedures, in the past five years, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29908/24]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
796. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Health the number of persons in the 26 counties who have availed of the Cross Border Directive scheme to apply for a refund for cataract removal in the past five years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29910/24]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
799. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for Health if he will address a matter raised in correspondence (details supplied) in relation to the provision of employers certificate of competency to certain staff members in the health and social care sector; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29914/24]
View answerI have asked the HSE to respond directly to the Deputy on this matter.
800. Deputy Fergus O'Dowd asked the Minister for Health to review and respond to concerns raised by a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29915/24]
View answerFirstly, I would like to acknowledge the important work carried out by all Clinical Placement Coordinators. Their work is of significant value to our services.
Recent increases applied to the Clinical Nurse/ Midwife Manager 2 (CNM/CMM) scale were a result of the implementation of recommendation 45 of the Expert Review Body (ERB) on Nursing and Midwifery and Labour Court recommendation LCR22828.
Recommendation 45 of the ERB set out that the Clinical Nurse Manager 2 and Clinical Midwife Manager 2 pay scales would be extended by an additional scale point making Point 10 the new max of scale. The scale would also gain an LSI at Point 11. As part of the new Public Service Agreement, 2024-2026, it was agreed that the recommendations set out by the Labour Court would be implemented with effect from 1 January 2024.
While it is the case that certain grades in the HSE have similar pay scales, this does not mean that they are linked to one another. LCR22828 refers only to the implementation of recommendations 44-46 of the ERB and their encompassed grades.
801. Deputy Jennifer Carroll MacNeill asked the Minister for Health the number of adults currently waiting on a residential bed, by county; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29918/24]
View answerAs this is an operational matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
802. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Minister for Health the reason the CNM2 salary scale at an organisation (details supplied) has not been extended by the addition of one further scale point; the reason the long service increment has not been introduced, both of which were recommended by the Expert Review Body on Nursing and Midwifery; if there are plans to implement these changes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29920/24]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond directly to the Deputy.
803. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Health the grants that are available for older people towards the cost of a mobility scooter. [29921/24]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
804. Deputy Patrick Costello asked the Minister for Health for details of the national gender service's past and current involvement with the Northern Ireland gender identity service review. [29941/24]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
805. Deputy Patrick Costello asked the Minister for Health if the national gender service has accepted the offer to provide training to paediatric clinicians in the UK [29942/24]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
806. Deputy Patrick Costello asked the Minister for Health the patient data of the national gender service that was shared with the Cass review; and the anonymisation that was performed. [29943/24]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
807. Deputy Patrick Costello asked the Minister for Health if his attention has been drawn to the fact that clinicians with extensive experience have found serious methodological flaws in the Cass review (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29944/24]
View answerAs the Deputy will be aware, a new clinical programme for gender healthcare has been initiated by the HSE, and over the next two years an updated clinical model for gender healthcare services will be developed.
To improve the clinical pathway for people with gender health needs, the HSE has appointed the Clinical Lead for the multidisciplinary team (MDT) who will lead the development of a new Model of Care under the auspices of the National Clinical Programmes.
The work will be informed by the best evidence based clinical care for individuals who express gender incongruence or dysphoria. Emerging and evolving international evidence, including the recently published Cass Report will be reviewed as part of this work.
The HSE’s Gender Healthcare National Clinical Programme is committed to developing an updated model of care in a consultative way and stakeholder engagement will be an important part of this work. This will ensure that people with lived experience will be involved in the design of services and advise on the delivery and evaluation of services.
It is important that the HSE is given time to develop a model of care that is based on the best clinical evidence and that will deliver the best outcomes for persons with gender incongruence or dysphoria.
I welcome the development of a model of care which will deliver a high quality seamless and integrated service for people with gender identity issues.
808. Deputy Christopher O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Health the arrangements made under the waiver of pension abatement for front-line staff in the context of the Covid-19 vaccination programme; the length of time the waiver was in place for; when the waiver concluded; if his Department made those impacted by the waiver aware of its conclusion; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29946/24]
View answerOn 10 March 2020, my Department informed the HSE that, following engagement with the Department of Public Expenditure & Reform (DPER), approval was given under Section 52(4) of the Public Service Pensions (Single Scheme and Other Provisions) Act 2012 for a temporary waiver of pension abatement for retirees who returned to work as critical front-line healthcare staff during the Covid emergency.
The HSE has confirmed that support provided to the vaccination programme was carried out via the national recruitment campaign. The individuals appointed to this programme were agency workers in respect of whom pension abatement did not apply.
The initial approval for the waiver of pension abatement for health sector retirees was granted up to 30 June 2020. However, given the extraordinary circumstances of the pandemic and the uncertainty of its future course, DPER granted periodic extensions to the temporary blanket waiver following regular reviews by my Department and the HSE.
The temporary blanket waiver of pension abatement continued up to 31 March 2021 when pension abatement policy for the health sector returned to normal in line with other sectors. This was conveyed on 15 January 2021 by my Department to the National Director of Human Resources, HSE by Department of Health Circular 1/2021.
Following the conclusion of the temporary blanket waiver, requests by HSE for waivers of pension abatement have been considered on a case-by-case basis under normal pension abatement policy rules that apply across the public and civil service.
809. Deputy Christopher O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Health the amount of overpayment made to healthcare workers since the conclusion of the waiver of pension abatement for front-line staff in the context of the Covid-19 vaccination programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29947/24]
View answerAs this is a matter for the Health Service Executive, the HSE has been asked to respond directly to the Deputy.
810. Deputy Cathal Crowe asked the Minister for Health when a person (details supplied) can expect to hear an outcome to their claim for improved pay and conditions; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29953/24]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
