New Government, new priorities?

There’s a new boss at the health department’s fancy offices on the Miesian Plaza in Dublin, writes Maurice Gueret, who may be getting painkillers with his pizza

Nuts and bolts

I wasn’t quite as surprised as the Fianna Fail party membership with the appointment of Wicklow TD Stephen Donnelly as Minister for Health. Micheal Martin had a very keen eye for management consultants during his five years on the top floors of Hawkins House. It has been suggested that the final bill for such work during his tenure was well in excess of €30m. This included almost €700,000 on a health and lifestyle survey and over €500,000 on an audit of health service structures. Martin’s legacies in Health are a tobacco ban and the foundation of the HSE, one more heavily trumpeted than the other. So, what about Stephen? With a degree in mechanical engineering and a working background in management consultancy, our new minister will surely be able to count nuts and bolts for himself. He has fans in the healthcare arena. Cancer specialist John Crown welcomed the appointment of somebody with clear thinking and an extremely analytical mind, describing Donnelly as the most impressive parliamentarian he met during his time in the Seanad. I’m old enough to recall similar things being said about Mary Harney back in her day. I wish Stephen well, but remain a glass-half-empty kind of guy when it comes to expecting one person to reform this medical caste system on their own.

Saint Tibulus

Interesting that our new health minister and his predecessor, Simon Harris, both represent the sleepy coastal town of Greystones. There hasn’t been such excitement in the village since the blasphemous ‘Passion of Saint Tibulus’ episode of Father Ted (pictured right)was shot outside the old Ormonde cinema on Victoria Road. What is perhaps most extraordinary is that both men represent a county that doesn’t have an acute hospital. This is unusual in Ireland, where at least 20 of our 26 counties still maintain some sort of general hospital services. Wicklow has long relied on the neighbouring counties of Dublin and Kildare for emergency ambulance trips. Another health minister from the region could be good news for those who want to stop hospitals in Dun Laoghaire and Loughlinstown from being further downgraded.

I’ll try to refrain from having another pop at Slaintecare this week. If sloganeering and old political ideologies were what our health services needed, it would be perfect. Let’s hope Minister Donnelly calls it out early for what it is. He might engage a few management consultants from mainland Europe who will set him on a correct path for a one-tier universal health service.

Pizza and pills

It was announced this month that some branches of LloydsPharmacy in cities of England, Wales and Scotland are to trial 30-minute delivery services with food delivery company Deliveroo. I’d be more than a bit worried if rival chemists started to send suppositories out with Just-Eat. This new fad is, perhaps, moving with the times, but many independent

Irish pharmacies already offer their own delivery service, using a husband on his way to golf or a passing pal to deliver prescriptions. Initially, Deliveroo drivers will be limited to a menu of 50 ‘medical essentials’. It’s all over-thecounter stuff: teething gel, bandages, Calpol, panty liners, lozenges, hayfever remedies, rehydration salts, cough bottles, thermometers, masks and antiseptic creams. A small margherita with jalapeno peppers, red onions and ibuprofen is good for me.

County terminations

On to more serious matters, with the publication this summer of county numbers for the 6,666 abortions carried out in the State last year.

The figures reignited the conversation about how much work is required to improve access to basic biology lessons and contraceptive services in this State. There are interesting discrepancies between counties of equal or similar-sized populations. Why has Carlow twice as many terminations as Monaghan? Kerry had 48 terminations. Similarly sized Wexford had 165. Anti-choice groups have called the figures terrifying. Frankly, I found it more terrifying that Ireland relied on backstreet abortion and the export of difficult cases abroad for decades. The testimony of so many Irish women forced abroad to have foetal malformations dealt with safely and humanely helped to bring us out of a dark age. Nobody likes to see a high abortion rate. We have much to do to reduce unplanned pregnancies. On that, all sides can agree.