Results 161-180 of 1,132,644 for in 'Dáil debates' OR in 'Committee meetings' (speaker:Joe O'Brien OR speaker:Dara Calleary OR speaker:Stephen Donnelly OR speaker:Joe Flaherty OR speaker:Seán Fleming OR speaker:Darragh O'Brien OR speaker:Brendan Smith OR speaker:Imelda Munster OR speaker:Michael Ring OR speaker:Mattie McGrath OR speaker:Carol Nolan OR speaker:John McGuinness OR speaker:Robert Troy OR speaker:Frank Feighan OR speaker:Damien English OR speaker:Eamon Ryan OR speaker:Paschal Donohoe OR speaker:Cathal Crowe OR speaker:Thomas Gould OR speaker:Cian O'Callaghan OR speaker:Mark Ward OR speaker:Helen McEntee OR speaker:Richard Boyd Barrett OR speaker:Seán Canney OR speaker:Christopher O'Sullivan OR speaker:Peter Burke OR speaker:Martin Kenny)

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Issues relating to University Hospital Limerick: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: I thank the Senator for that. We are going to get her the beds number. We had some very good news for St. John's. I am just going to find it now. In the new bed plan, we have committed an additional 57 beds to St. John's. I have been in the hospital several times. It has an amazing team that put a very strong case together. The Senator will be aware that 15 beds have been delivered...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Issues relating to University Hospital Limerick: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: There is more here than I can cover. I will give the Senator one or two highlights, if I may. The day unit in UHL has been a big focus with regard to cancer care infrastructure. UHL has prepared and submitted a capital project proposal to move the administrative and clerical meeting spaces to a separate building and to convert those spaces to clinical spaces to increase capacity. That is...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Issues relating to University Hospital Limerick: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: I beg the Senator's pardon. I am sorry to interrupt. If there is time, Ms Tracey Conroy leads in the Department on cancer care. She can give the Senator a better answer than I have just given.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Issues relating to University Hospital Limerick: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: I will get the Senator a note on that. I cannot be sure but I think I may have misspoken. I think I might have been on radio or in the Oireachtas and I may have said quarter 1, when in fact it was quarter 2. That might simply be optimism bias on my part. If it was indeed quarter 1 and it has been moved to quarter 2, I will get the Senator a note on that and what the reasons for that would...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Issues relating to University Hospital Limerick: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: I will give some very quick answers and then ask Ms Broderick to outline some of the operational details. As the Deputy stated, there has been a big investment in the injury and medical assessment units. The hours have been extended. The Deputy and I discussed this in the Dáil earlier this week or maybe last week. We need the facility to be fully utilised. I have no doubt that Ms...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Issues relating to University Hospital Limerick: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: The Deputy and I need an entire committee session to ourselves to get through all that.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Issues relating to University Hospital Limerick: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: I propose the following. The first questions she asked are around ED and statutory inquiries, which we have discussed at length, so will I go on to the questions she asked that we have not discussed yet?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Issues relating to University Hospital Limerick: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: Yes.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Issues relating to University Hospital Limerick: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: The Deputy has asked some new questions that are pertinent to patient safety in UHL. We might ask the Chair for a little indulgence in terms of the clock. The claims being made about staff vacancies and patient safety are disputed by me, the Department, the chief nurse and the HSE. I have written to the unions and asked for a list of these 2,000 alleged vacant posts. We have not got it...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Issues relating to University Hospital Limerick: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: I commit to getting a note on haemodialysis. The following is relevant to all members and goes to the heart of this. The Deputy asked will it be a question of which region shouts the loudest. The region, quite rightly, that has had the biggest per capita increase in investment in healthcare in the time of this Government is the mid-west. The region that has had the biggest increase in...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Issues relating to University Hospital Limerick: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: To the Senator's opening point regarding Ian Carter, I have accepted it. With the greatest respect, if the Senator really wanted Ian Carter here, he should have invited him here.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Issues relating to University Hospital Limerick: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: With respect, the Senator is going over it too. I have already accepted the point.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Issues relating to University Hospital Limerick: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: If the Senator is that keen to talk to Ian Carter, he is more than capable of inviting Ian Carter. That is the only thing I would say. I have accepted the point.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Issues relating to University Hospital Limerick: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: As regards any specific changes and considerations with regard to the terms of reference for the HIQA review, I would need to go back and look at the paperwork involved. I do not believe I could give an answer here that would be satisfactory to the Senator. I cannot point to individual lines or clauses.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Issues relating to University Hospital Limerick: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: As I was saying earlier on, an interim report will be coming to me in February. The Senator is perfectly entitled to challenge me. I fully accept that. The only challenge I would make back is that his party held the office of Minister for Health from 2011 to 2020 and it is only now that a HIQA review is being carried out. While I accept the urgency of this matter, with respect, the...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Issues relating to University Hospital Limerick: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: I will provide a clarification. It is relevant to the question the Senator is asking. Deputy Shortall stated earlier that HIQA recommended another emergency department and model 3 hospital in 2022 or 2023.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Issues relating to University Hospital Limerick: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: That has been checked and the advice I have been given is that HIQA did not make such a recommendation. It did not recommend a second emergency department. I mention that for clarity. If the advice I am getting is incorrect, that is absolutely fine, but that is the advice I have. My view is that there is a strong case for a second emergency department in the mid-west. That is why I...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Issues relating to University Hospital Limerick: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: It was both. They get agreed between the Department and HIQA.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Issues relating to University Hospital Limerick: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Stephen Donnelly: It was definitely me and my Department. I believe HIQA was looking for the same thing.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health: Issues relating to University Hospital Limerick: Discussion (10 Oct 2024)

Cathal Crowe: Could the Chairman allow us a minute each? We have hung on all afternoon.