Health Services

682. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether the HSE has conducted any centralised assessment of variation in operational or clinical decision-making between the six Health Regions since their establishment; and if she will provide details of any such assessment. [36192/26]

683. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether any governance framework exists to ensure consistency of service access criteria across the six Health Regions; and if she will provide a copy of that framework. [36193/26]

684. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether the Department of Health has requested or commissioned any audit, review, or risk assessment regarding regional variation in healthcare decision-making since 2022. [36194/26]

685. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether the HSE maintains any national register, dashboard, or monitoring mechanism tracking regional inconsistencies in policy implementation, patient access, approvals, or operational practices. [36195/26]

686. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether any concerns have been raised internally within the HSE regarding inconsistent application of national policies across Health Regions; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36196/26]

687. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether the HSE Chief Internal Auditor has identified regional inconsistency as a governance or operational risk within any audit, assurance, or advisory work since 2022. [36197/26]

688. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health how the HSE ensures equal treatment of patients across all six Health Regions in circumstances where no dedicated audit of regional decision-making consistency has been conducted. [36198/26]

689. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether any external assurance body has reviewed consistency of governance arrangements across the six Health Regions since 2022. [36199/26]

690. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether any national escalation mechanism exists where differing regional interpretations of HSE policy arise; and if she will provide details of same. [36200/26]

691. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether the HSE intends to undertake a dedicated internal audit into consistency of decision-making across Health Regions; and if not, the reason for this position. [36201/26]

722. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether any key performance indicators currently used within the Health Regions framework specifically measure consistency of decision-making, policy application, or service eligibility across regions; and if so, to provide details of those indicators. [36286/26]

725. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health number of formal escalations, interventions, corrective actions, or performance management measures initiated under the Performance and Accountability Framework in respect of Health Regions since their establishment. [36289/26]

726. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether any independent external evaluation has been commissioned regarding governance consistency within the Health Regions model; and if not, whether such an evaluation is planned. [36290/26]

727. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether the Department has assessed the risk that increased regional autonomy could result in unequal access to services or inconsistent operational interpretation of national policy across different parts of the State. [36291/26]

728. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether patients or service users currently have any formal mechanism to challenge regional inconsistencies in service access, eligibility determinations, or operational decisions between Health Regions. [36292/26]

729. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether comparative regional dashboards exist showing differences in operational approvals, expenditure patterns, staffing allocation, or service delivery outcomes between the six Health Regions. [36293/26]

730. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether the HSE intends to publish periodic comparative reports assessing consistency of service delivery and operational governance across all Health Regions [36294/26]

769. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Health whether the SMS reminder systems in use across hospitals are configured as one-way reminder services or include two-way communication functionality allowing patients to confirm, cancel or reschedule appointments; to provide a breakdown by hospital; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36438/26]

770. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Health the cost per SMS message incurred by each hospital or healthcare facility based on the provider or system in use; the total expenditure on SMS appointment reminders in the most recent twelve-month period; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36439/26]

771. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Health the number of outpatient appointment reminder SMS messages issued by each hospital or healthcare facility in the past three months; to provide this information on a per-hospital basis; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36440/26]

772. Deputy Albert Dolan asked the Minister for Health the extent to which SMS reminder systems are actively utilised across hospitals, including a comparison of usage levels between sites; whether any hospitals with access to such systems are not making full use of them; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36441/26]

202. Deputy Mairéad Farrell asked the Minister for Health the number of people in Galway waiting for assessment for PMC; the number in Galway waiting 4 weeks or less, 4-12 weeks, 12-24 weeks and over 24 weeks, in tabular form; the average waiting time between making an application and having an assessment carried out; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35507/26]

222. Deputy Niamh Smyth asked the Minister for Health for an update on a speech and language therapy application (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35371/26]

223. Deputy Noel McCarthy asked the Minister for Health to outline proposals being considered for the future development of buildings and associated sites (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35372/26]

248. Deputy Pádraig Rice asked the Minister for Health the date at which she expects the 24/7 cardiac care service at University Hospital Waterford to be operational; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35628/26]