Róisín Shortall
Question:400. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Health the number of persons on a waiting list for CAMHS, by CHO, age category and time waiting, in tabular form. [30791/24]
View answerHealth Services Waiting Lists
Questions (400)
Written answers
As this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond directly to the Deputy as soon as possible.
Health Services Waiting Lists
Questions (401)
Róisín Shortall
Question:401. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Health the number of persons on a waiting list for dietetics, by CHO, age category and time waiting, in tabular form. [30793/24]
View answerWritten answers
As this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
Hospital Services
Questions (402)
Róisín Shortall
Question:402. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Health the number of delayed discharges, by category and hospital, in tabular form. [30794/24]
View answerWritten answers
As this is an operational matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly, as soon as possible.
Care Services
Questions (403)
Róisín Shortall
Question:403. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Health the number of persons on a waiting list for homecare packages; the number of persons experiencing delayed discharge from hospital due to a delay accessing homecare; and the waiting lists for homecare packages, by CHO and LHO, in tabular form. [30795/24]
View answerWritten answers
As this is an operational matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly, as soon as possible.
Hospital Facilities
Questions (404)
Róisín Shortall
Question:404. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Health to provide a detailed breakdown of the schedule of delivery for the 22 additional critical care beds provided for in the HSE National Service Plan 2024. [30796/24]
View answerWritten answers
The Strategic Plan for Critical Care that was brought to Government in 2020 is successfully addressing historical deficiencies in critical care capacity. Significant funding of €78.2 million has been provided by Government since 2021 under Phase 1 of the Strategic Plan. This funding provides for an additional 94 beds over the 2020 baseline figure of 258 beds and will bring capacity to 352. At the end of 2023, there were 329 beds in place. A further 22 beds were confirmed in NSP 2024. Today, there are 334 beds in place, an increase of 76 beds or 29.5% on the baseline figure. To put the increase into perspective, there had been an increase of just 21 beds in the previous eight years (2013 -2020 inclusive). As the delivery of the remaining beds is a service matter, I have referred the matter to the HSE for direct reply.
Hospital Facilities
Questions (405)
Róisín Shortall
Question:405. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Health to provide a detailed breakdown of the schedule of delivery for the 354 net additional and 74 replacement acute inpatient beds outlined in the acute inpatient hospital bed expansion plan. [30797/24]
View answerWritten answers
Since 2020 this Government has delivered 1,218 net additional acute hospital beds. In addition to the beds already delivered, the recently published Acute Hospital Inpatient Bed Capacity Expansion Plan 2024-2031 sets out the plan for delivery of a further 4,367 acute beds.
The Plan delivers on my commitment to ensure balanced regional bed capacity and to ensure patients across Ireland have equity of access while also helping to meet the health needs of our growing and aging population.
This will represent the largest planned expansion of public acute hospital inpatient capacity in decades.
At the time of writing the Plan 1,015 acute beds are under construction or have committed funding to progress to construction over the next number of years. Regarding the 354 net additional and 74 replacement acute inpatient beds to be delivered across the country, a detailed breakdown and planned schedule for delivery of these beds is set out in the attached table.
As with any plan, these timelines can be impacted by factors such as the availability of labour and specialised resources within the construction sector to enable project delivery and site specific issues.
I, and officials in my Department, will be working closely with the HSE to ensure the expeditious delivery of these projects.
|
HSE Health Region |
Acute Hospital |
Additional 2024 |
Replacement 2024 |
Additional 2025 |
Replacement 2025 |
Additional 2026 |
Replacement 2026 |
Additional 2027 |
|||||||||||||||
|
Our Lady of Lourdes Drogheda |
16 |
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Connolly Hospital |
15 |
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Mater Misericordiae Univ. Hosp. |
10 |
1 |
|||||||||||||||||||||
|
TOTALS |
25 |
0 |
17 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
||||||||||||||||
|
Dublin Midlands |
St James Hospital |
6 |
|||||||||||||||||||||
|
TOTALS |
6 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
||||||||||||||||
|
St Vincent's Hospital |
6 |
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
St Luke's Hospital Kilkenny |
18 |
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Kilcreene |
18 |
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
TOTALS |
42 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
||||||||||||||||
|
Galway University Hospital |
|||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Sligo General Hospital |
27 |
42 |
|||||||||||||||||||||
|
Portiuncula Hospital |
10 |
50 |
|||||||||||||||||||||
|
TOTALS |
37 |
50 |
0 |
0 |
42 |
0 |
0 |
||||||||||||||||
|
Midwest |
Univ Hosp. Limerick |
16 |
72 |
24 |
96 |
||||||||||||||||||
|
Totals |
16 |
0 |
72 |
24 |
0 |
0 |
96 |
||||||||||||||||
|
Southwest |
Cork University Hospital |
1 |
|||||||||||||||||||||
|
TOTALS |
1 |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
||||||||||||||||
|
Additional 2024 |
Replacement 2024 |
Additional 2025 |
Replacement 2025 |
Additional 2026 |
Replacement 2026 |
Additional 2027 |
|||||||||||||||||
|
Summary |
Overall TOTALS |
127 |
50 |
89 |
24 |
42 |
- |
96 |
Mental Health Services
Questions (406)
Róisín Shortall
Question:406. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Health to provide an update on implementation of recommendation 46 from Sharing the Vision, in respect of bed capacity in approved centres; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30798/24]
View answerWritten answers
As this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond directly to the Deputy as soon as possible.
Legislative Measures
Questions (407)
Róisín Shortall
Question:407. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Health to provide an update on his Department’s consideration of the Law Reform Commission's report entitled 'A Regulatory Framework for Adult Safeguarding', and its recommendations; the timeline he is working towards in drafting a new safeguarding Bill; if he will commit to establishing a new and fully independent national safeguarding authority; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30799/24]
View answerWritten answers
As I indicated in my reply to the Deputy's question (18930/24) on this matter on 30 April 2024, safeguarding at-risk adults against abuse is of paramount importance and is taken very seriously by the Government. I have welcomed the independent Law Reform Commission’s Report on ‘A Regulatory Framework for Adult Safeguarding’, published in April. The Report sets out comprehensive and wide-ranging recommendations that have relevance across a range of Government Departments. I anticipate that the Commission's Report will be carefully considered by all relevant Departments in relation to their respective functions and in relation to the Commission's recommendations on inter-departmental cooperation. The Department of Health will continue to work in partnership with other relevant Departments in this regard.
Separately, the Department of Health, in liaison with the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, is at an advanced stage of developing a national policy on adult safeguarding specifically in respect of the health and care sector, in order to further strengthen existing protections in this sector. A public consultation closed on 2 April and the consultation feedback report is currently being prepared by the Institute of Public Health. It is expected that this Department's proposed policy will be finalised and brought before Government around the end of this year, informed by the consultation process and also the Law Reform Commission’s report.
Home Help Service
Questions (408)
Róisín Shortall
Question:408. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Health the status of his Department’s work in respect of establishing a funding model for a statutory right to home care; the options being considered; the timeline he is working towards; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30800/24]
View answerWritten answers
Home Support aims to enable people to continue to live in their own homes with confidence, security and dignity. It is a non-statutory service and access to the current service is based on assessment of the person’s needs by the HSE; having regard to available resources and the competing demands for the services. Demand for Home Support, and its importance as an alternative service to long stay care, has grown considerably over the past number of years.
Extensive work is ongoing within the Department across four broad areas to make progress on the Programme of Government commitment to “introduce a statutory scheme to support people to live in their own homes, which will provide equitable access to high quality, regulated home care”.
The proposed regulatory framework will confer on HIQA, the authority to grant, amend and ultimately revoke a license if home support providers fail to meet minimum requirements set out in draft regulations and supported by quality standards. On 14 May 2024, the General Scheme was approved by Government and has been published on the Department of Health website www.gov.ie/en/publication/a3ef4-general-scheme-of-the-health-amendment-licensing-of-professional-home-support-providers-bill-2024/ along with the Regulatory Impact Analysis.
The Department is engaging with the HSE on the development of a reformed model of home support service delivery. The Department is committed to a single assessment process and the HSE are developing standardised operational policies, integrated care pathways, robust governance and accountability structures. A key enabler will be a bespoke ICT system which is currently being progressed through procurement.
Implementation of the 16 recommendations of the strategic workforce advisory group is being addressed by a cross-departmental group, chaired by the Department of Health. The minutes and progress reports can be found here: www.gov.ie/en/publication/66dd1-strategic-workforce-advisory-group-on-home-carers-and-nursing-home-healthcare-assistants/. A new HSE home support tender has been in place since August ‘23. This delivers on commitments for sectoral reform such as payment for travel time for home support providers, paying carers the National Living Wage at a minimum, and bringing legacy rates in line with the new revised rates of funding.
Currently, home support services are fully exchequer funded. The Department is researching different funding models which will form an important part of the evidence base for the development of a sustainable funding model for home care services and has commissioned several reports from the ESRI and the European Observatory on Health Systems. This research is being examined, as it forms an important part of the evidence base for the development of a sustainable funding model for home support services in the context of our ageing population.
The Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) undertook a programme of work on behalf of the Department on the potential demand and cost of home support which culminated in two reports:
www.esri.ie/publications/demand-for-the-statutory-home-care-scheme
www.esri.ie/publications/home-support-services-in-ireland-exchequer-and-distributional-impacts-of-funding
Data from the ESRI ‘Demand for Statutory Home Support Scheme’ Report 2021 indicate that up to 8 million additional hours of home support may be required in less than 10-years to meet the increased demand from people with Activities of Daily Living (ADL) difficulties who may have previously relied on unpaid and family care. (ESRI, 2021).
A rapid response from the European Observatory on Health Systems was commissioned and published in March 2023 setting out a number of funding options:
eurohealthobservatory.who.int/publications/i/improving-home-care-sustainability-in-ireland-are-user-charges-a-promising-option
No final decision on future funding has been made and further research is currently underway to enhance the evidence base.
Care of the Elderly
Questions (409)
Róisín Shortall
Question:409. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Health to provide an update on the work of the Commission on Care for Older People; the timeline for completion of each of the three modules; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30801/24]
View answerWritten answers
In fulfilment of the commitment in the Programme for Government, the Government has established an independent Commission on Care for Older People, the inaugural meeting of which was held on 21st March 2024. In Budget 2024 €1.243 million was allocated to the Commission, which is being supported by a secretariat from my Department.
The Commission is chaired by Professor Alan Barrett (Chief Executive Officer, Economic and Social Research Institute) and is comprised of independent experts. Collectively the members of the Commission provide expertise across the areas of geriatrics, gerontology, health economics, health policy and management, primary care, health ethics, health technologies, and ageing and disability, as well as representation of the community and voluntary sector and of older people.
The Commission is charged with examining the provision of health and social care services and supports for older people and with making recommendations to the Government for their strategic development. Subsequently a cross-departmental group will be established under the auspices of the Commission to consider whether the supports for positive ageing across the life course are fit-for-purpose and to develop a costed implementation plan for options to optimise these supports.
The work of the Commission will be advanced through three modules of work. The first two modules will each be of six months’ duration while the final module will be of 12 months’ duration. The modules will run consecutively.
In Module 1 the Commission is charged with determining the effectiveness, adequacy and efficiency of the care and supports which are currently provided within the health and social care system, including the plans for their further development, in meeting the evolving care needs of the increasing diversity of older people within the context of the ageing population. The Commission will prepare for my consideration and that of the Minister for Health a report detailing the Commission’s work in respect of Module 1 including any learnings for inclusion in Module 2.
In Module 2 the Commission will examine the broader policy options for older people’s care, as determined in Module 1, and will develop a costed and detailed implementation plan for the selected options. At the conclusion of Module 2, the Commission will prepare for my consideration and that of the Minister for Health a report detailing the challenges and opportunities identified, and present a framework for the overarching strategic development of health and social care services and supports for older people that advances national strategic objectives.
In Module 3 a Cross-Departmental Group will be established under the auspices of the Commission to consider whether the mainstreaming of ageing across Government and civil society is effective in supporting citizens’ healthy, positive, and autonomous ageing across the life course and to prepare for my consideration and that of the Minister for Health a costed and detailed implementation plan for the selected options to enable positive ageing in Irish society.
The Commission has held five meetings to date. In addition, a Reference Group of non-governmental and civil society organisations and other key stakeholders working in the area, including those with lived experience, has been established. The inaugural meeting of the Reference Group was convened on 18th June 2024. The Reference Group will engage in an advisory capacity with the Commission as well as with the cross-departmental group established under its auspices.
Health Services
Questions (410)
Róisín Shortall
Question:410. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Health the status of the review into urgent and emergency care capacity in the mid-west region; if the terms of reference have been finalised; the timeline for delivery of findings and recommendations; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30802/24]
View answerWritten answers
As this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
Health Services Staff
Questions (411)
Róisín Shortall
Question:411. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Health his plans for the special scheme of paid leave for eligible public health sector employees suffering from long-covid, following the three-month extension announced in April 2024; if he will replace the temporary scheme with a long-term occupation illness scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30803/24]
View answerWritten answers
In the public health sector, a temporary Special Scheme was put in place for 12 months in July 2022 to support eligible staff who were impacted by Long-Covid. At the request of my Department, approval to extend the Special Scheme was granted by the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP and Reform (DPENDPR) a number of times, most recently at the end of June when it was extended for a further 12 months on the existing terms for the existing cohort of employees already being supported by it.
DPENDPR have been very clear that this was the final extension that would be granted, and as such, the Special Scheme will conclude on 30th June 2025.
Any employee of the public health sector remaining unwell beyond that date, may utilise the full provisions of the Public Service Sick Leave Scheme which will provide further support.
Employees who did not qualify for the Special Scheme but are also impacted by Long-Covid may also utilise the supports of the sick leave scheme.The sick leave scheme provides full pay for three months, followed by half pay for three months, and after that, Temporary Rehabilitative Remuneration may be applied for, which, if granted, provides up to a further 547 days of paid leave. The Critical Illness Protocol that forms part of the sick leave scheme may also provide additional supports if granted.
The eligibility criteria set when the Special Scheme was first introduced were designed to ensure that employees supported by the Special Scheme included those working in a COVID exposed environment in the period before PPE and vaccinations were readily available, and before community transmission became more prevalent.
It was not possible, nor would it have been appropriate to provide access to the Special Scheme to all employees of the public health service who contracted COVID, as the contraction of COVID is a public health issue, and not an occupational issue, and as it is not possible to separate with absolute certainty, those who contracted COVID in the workplace from those who contracted COVID generally.
Further to this, my colleague, the Minister for Social Protection has reviewed the EU recommendation in respect of the recognition of Covid (not long Covid) as an occupational illness, however she has determined that Covid does not meet the criteria required for recognition in respect of the Social Welfare Acts.
Care Services
Questions (412)
Róisín Shortall
Question:412. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Health to respond to the latest progress report of the strategic workforce implementation group on home carers and nursing home healthcare assistants, and specifically recommendations one, three and eleven, which are impacted by the HSE recruitment freeze; the steps he is taking to ensure that these recommendations are delivered; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30804/24]
View answerWritten answers
In March 2022, the Minister for Mental Health and Older People, Mary Butler, T.D., established a cross-departmental Strategic Workforce Advisory Group and this Group was charged with examining, and formulating recommendations to address challenges in front-line carer roles in home support and long-term residential care sectors. The Report of the Strategic Workforce Advisory Group on Home Carers and Nursing Home Healthcare Assistants was published on 15 October 2022 and made 16 recommendations spanning the areas of recruitment; pay and conditions of employment; barriers to employment; training and professional development; sectoral reform; and monitoring and implementation.
The implementation of the 16 recommendations is underway by a cross-departmental group, chaired by the Department of Health. The implementation group meets quarterly and publishes progress reports thereafter. The implementation group met for the fourth time in May 2024 and a progress update will be published shortly.
A new HSE home support tender has been in place since August 2023. This delivers on commitments for sectoral reform such as payment for travel time for home support providers, paying carers the National Living Wage at a minimum, and bringing legacy rates in line with the new revised rates of funding. Additionally, recommendation number 9 is fully implemented. The statutory instrument authorising the issuance of 1,000 employment permits for homecare workers was signed on 16 December 2022. 917 permits have been issued as of June 2024.
The Home Support Service is funded by Government to deliver a volume of service each year as approved in the HSE National Service Plan. It aims to enable older people to continue living in their own homes with confidence, security and dignity, and the Government has stated its aim to improve community-based services to make this possible. Home support is a non-statutory service and access to the current service is based on assessment of the person’s needs by the HSE, having regard to the available resources and competing demands for the service. Home Support Services for Older People are provided either by directly employed staff or by voluntary and private providers who have formal tender arrangements with the HSE to deliver the services.
Recommendation 1 of the Strategic Workforce Advisory Group calls for a national campaign to raise the profile and promote the training opportunities available for a career as a healthcare assistant and home support worker.
Recommendation 3 calls on the HSE to build its capacity for timely, targeted, and locally focused recruitment of healthcare assistants and home support workers, to include enhanced advertising of vacant roles. It is also recommended that a rolling recruitment campaign should continue in each CHO for as long as positions remain unfilled.
Recommendation 11 proposes that there should be a significant increase in the proportion of home support hours and packages provided directly by the HSE.
Regarding the recruitment of direct Home Support staff, the HSE conducts local rolling recruitment campaigns across the CHOs. A process is in place across the HSE whereby service areas may seek approval for the recruitment of certain grades of staff including Home Care Assistants (Home Support) to assist with patient flow. Additionally, the HSE has encouraged its Chief Officers, where appropriate, to consider increasing the hours of current home support staff who may have additional capacity.
In June 2023, the HSE launched an action orientated Resourcing Strategy to help address the future workforce needs of the HSE. This programme of work has been developed with and by the services. It is driven by 5 professional led service groups, one of which is focused on Patient Client Care and Support Grades to include home support workers. The Strategy is available at the following web-link: - HSE Resourcing Strategy 2023.
The HSE and Department of Health continue to monitor the proportion of directly provided service through the performance management framework. The Department of Health is currently developing a regulatory framework for home support providers. This will consist of primary legislation for the licensing of providers, secondary legislation in the form of regulations, and HIQA national standards. The introduction of this framework will ensure consistent high quality service across public and private providers of home support. This will offer quality assurance to service users that their service meets the same minimum standards wherever and however it is provided.
Health Services
Questions (413)
Róisín Shortall
Question:413. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Health the status of the HSE pay and numbers strategy for 2024; the timeline for publication; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30805/24]
View answerWritten answers
As this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
Health Services
Questions (414)
Róisín Shortall
Question:414. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Health the status of the strategic review of radiation therapy which commenced in December 2022; the timeline for delivery of the report and recommendations; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30806/24]
View answerWritten answers
Firstly, I would like to acknowledge the incredibly important role of Radiation Therapists in the provision of cancer services in this country.
The independent review of the Radiation Therapist profession was agreed between the HSE, Department of Health and SIPTU, under the auspices of the WRC. This strategic review has been considering issues such as organisation structure, career development in line with Health and Social Care Professional Frameworks, strategic workforce planning and recruitment and retention strategies.
The Radiation Therapist review commenced in December 2022 and a report including recommendations is currently being drafted and will be published as soon as possible.
All outcomes of the review will be given due consideration by the Department of Health. Implementation of any recommendations from the review are subject to approval from the Departments of Health and Public Expenditure and Reform.