State health plan ‘failing to protect women’

THE Government has been accused of ignoring women’s health as a report shows they still have the second highest level of cancer and heart disease in the EU.

The Women’s Health Council, which carried out the study, said the National Health Strategy set up five years ago has failed in key areas.

The report found that breast and cervical screening programmes are still not in place nationally, more than two years after the 1999 target date laid down by the Department of Health. It also found that breast screening is available in just four health board areas and cervical screening services are also limited.

The report, entitled Promoting Women’s Health, accuses health boards of doing nothing in some areas identified as priorities in the national plan.

The boards are also criticised for carrying out many actions on a piecemeal basis and for their failure to share information and best practices.

The report concludes that the health strategy has meant a series of statements of intent rather than a practical attempt to deal with serious and specific women’s health problems.

“The lack of clearly articulated targets and specific funding meant that time was spent on defining what could be done, rather than actually doing it,” says the report.

Labour health spokesperson Liz McManus said the delays were “quite startling”.

“There is a considerable and dangerous gap between the promises made by the health minister to have a national screening programme in place by the end of 1999 and the mere pilot programmes that have been put in place a full three years after that target date,” she said yesterday.

“Screening is the key element in the fight against cancer. Breast cancer and cervical cancer screening programmes were promised. The reality is that both programmes are way behind their targets.

“Life expectancy for Irish women is on average seven years less than that enjoyed by French women and there is no doubt our failure to put comprehensive screening processes in place is a considerable contributory factor.”

Health Minister Micheál Martin yesterday welcomed the report, admitting women’s health policy must be linked with other health strategies.