Questions

710. Deputy Ryan O'Meara asked the Minister for Health further to PQ6452/26 and staffing in Thurles CMHT, for an update on the supplementary panel for the Clinical Nurse Manager post, which recently closed. [68151/26]

711. Deputy Ruth Coppinger asked the Minister for Health to consider bringing forward legislation to provide free universal access to blister packs for patients from pharmacies. [68183/26]

712. Deputy William Aird asked the Minister for Health if she will engage with the HSE and relevant professional bodies to establish a timeline for reviewing accreditation requirements, rather than waiting for the completion of the statutory regulation of psychotherapy. [68218/26]

714. Deputy William Aird asked the Minister for Health if she will confirm whether accreditations (details supplied) will be considered in the development of future professional standards and recruitment frameworks, taking account of CORU’s Standards of Proficiency for Psychotherapists. [68216/26]

716. Deputy William Aird asked the Minister for Health if she will engage with the HSE to review recruitment criteria for counselling and psychotherapy posts to recognise accredited cognitive behavioural psychotherapists (details supplied); the reason this accreditation is not accepted for certain HSE positions; and whether it will be considered in relevant grade code reviews and workforce planning. [68214/26]

717. Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Health the measures being taken to address prolonged waiting times in the emergency department at University Hospital Kerry; the current staffing and bed capacity within the emergency department; whether additional staffing, bed and diagnostic capacity is planned; and the measures being taken to reduce delays in diagnostic imaging and the reporting of results for emergency d…

718. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Health her plans to tackle overcrowding in the emergency department at St. Vincent's University Hospital; and if she has commissioned research on the specific impact of overcrowding on patients with moderate, as opposed to urgent and acute, disease or injury seeking emergency treatment, across the country with a view to ensuring better outcomes for such patients. [68265/…

719. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Health when a person (details supplied) in County Donegal will receive an orthopaedic appointment for Merlin Park University Hospital, Galway; and if the referral is an urgent or routine referral. [68261/26]

720. Deputy John McGuinness asked the Minister for Health if the provision for reimbursement support under the community drug scheme for a continuous glucose monitoring device will be extended beyond patients with type 1 diabetes to include patients with reactive hypoglycaemia; the number of patients affected by hypoglycaemia; and the estimated cost of including this cohort; and if she will make a statement on the ma…

721. Deputy Johnny Guirke asked the Minister for Health if she will provide details of the number of students who graduate each year in dentistry/orthodontics; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [68279/26]

722. Deputy Johnny Guirke asked the Minister for Health the measures she is taking to increase the number of orthodontists employed in the public sector; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [68278/26]

723. Deputy Johnny Guirke asked the Minister for Health if an orthodontist patient on the public list who is undergoing treatment can be seen and receive assistance from a different orthodontist in the same public hospital in the case where their assigned orthodontist is on extended sick leave; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [68277/26]

724. Deputy Johnny Guirke asked the Minister for Health for a breakdown of the number of children under the age of 18 years-of-age that received braces on the public list at Navan Hospital for each of the years 2020 to 2025, and to date in 2026, in tabular form. [68275/26]

725. Deputy Johnny Guirke asked the Minister for Health the number of children under the age of 18 years-of-age that are on a waiting list for an appointment with an orthodontist in Navan Hospital; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [68274/26]

726. Deputy Johnny Guirke asked the Minister for Health the number of full time and part time orthodontists that are employed in Navan Hospital; if she plans to recruit additional orthodontists in 2026; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [68273/26]

727. Deputy Naoise Ó Muirí asked the Minister for Health the current average waiting times for counselling and psychological services; the current waiting times for psychiatric assessment where such assessment is deemed clinically necessary; the procedures in place for reassessment where a person's mental health deteriorates while awaiting treatment or assessment; the interim supports and services available to indivi…

728. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Health in view of the plans to close unit 1 (dementia unit) and relocate patients from another ward in Sarsfield Court, whether she is aware that a similar unit remains closed (unit 5); and her views on the capacity therefore to move patients to unit 5. [68269/26]

729. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Health the number of units or wards currently vacant or used for administrative or training purposes on the Sarsfield Court site; and the date of closure of the unit or ward to patients, in tabular form. [68267/26]

730. Deputy Ryan O'Meara asked the Minister for Health further to Parliamentary Question No. 1184 of 16 September 2026, staffing in Nenagh CMHT, ongoing recruitment efforts for the Social Worker post, and with regards to the three panels being exhausted, the number of offers that were issued to candidates on said panels; if the reasons are known to the HSE that no candidates accepted the role; and for an update on th…

731. Deputy John McGuinness asked the Minister for Health the services that are available to Parkinson’s patients in the South East; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [68160/26]

732. Deputy John McGuinness asked the Minister for Health if she will provide a breakdown of the numbers of Parkinson’s disease sufferers known to the HSE in the South East, including specific breakdowns for Kilkenny, Carlow, Waterford and Wexford; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [68157/26]

733. Deputy Denise Mitchell asked the Minister for Health the way in which her Department and the HSE are ensuring that statutory minimum rates of pay and other conditions of employment for workers employed in the contract cleaning industry in publicly funded health settings are being adhered to; the inspection regime currently in place to ensure these workers are not being exploited; and to detail the number of brea…

734. Deputy Aindrias Moynihan asked the Minister for Health her plans to ensure that there are sufficient dementia care beds in Cork, if there are any planned closures and what alternatives will be put in place for dementia patients. [68297/26]

735. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Health the current staffing levels in hospital laboratory services, including haematology, microbiology and biochemistry departments, in each acute hospital; the number of laboratory staff rostered for overnight and out-of-hours on-call services; the number of vacant laboratory posts nationwide; and the measures being taken to ensure adequate staffing levels and rest pe…

736. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Health whether the HSE has examined the introduction or expansion of routine blood sampling at patient triage in emergency departments to ensure laboratory results are available at the time of first medical assessment; the hospitals in which such a model is currently in operation; the evaluation undertaken regarding its impact on patient waiting times and flow through e…