Cancer services will not return to pre-Covid-19 levels until year's end

The Irish Cancer Society expressed concern about the timeframe for a return to pre-Covid services.

Cancer services will not return to pre-Covid levels until December at the earliest, under the HSE’s plan for non-Covid care.

Plans laid out in A Safe Return to Health Services aim for 90% capacity from June for BreastCheck, CervicalCheck, BowelScreen and diabetic retina screening, rising to 100% from October.

The document also says outpatient clinic levels are due to be fully restored between July and September, while planned operations are to be fully restored to target levels between October and December.

No further Covid-19 surges

However this all depends on no further Covid-19 surges, the plan says. It also depends on completion of the vaccination programme. Clearing the waiting lists will not begin until after the summer, the plan says.

The Irish Cancer Society expressed concern about the timeframe for a return to pre-Covid services. 

"Before Covid-19, capacity across the cancer system was insufficient and this led to waiting lists that acted as barriers to timely care," it said. 

"The Irish Cancer Society does not want to return to these ‘normal’ levels. It is essential that capacity is expanded, that more healthcare workers are recruited and retained and that cancer services no longer have to compete for the same resources required for unscheduled care."

Potential abuse in residential centres

Also on Tuesday, limits on Hiqa’s powers to investigate potential abuse in residential centres were discussed at the Oireachtas Health Committee.

Of the 4,587 people who died with Covid-19, 2009 were nursing home residents, the committee heard.

Hiqa chief executive Phelim Quinn said: “ It is important to note that Covid-19 has not in itself signalled the need for regulatory reform; rather it has shone a spotlight on an issue that was already in need of urgent consideration.” 

Answering questions from Sinn Féin health spokesman David Cullinane, Mr Quinn agreed Hiqa currently does not have a remit to investigate complaints.

Asked if its approach is a blunt one, he said: “Yes, I suppose, in a very short answer.” 

His colleague Susan Cliffe, deputy chief inspector of social services, said increasing the Hiqa workforce without reform is not effective.

“The key point actually is the requirement for reform. When we go out, we inspect against regulations that we now see there are significant shortfalls with,” she said.

Senator Martin Conway queried why so many under-65s live in nursing homes.

HSE interim director of community operations Yvonne O’Neill said there were at least 1,330 such people and many were in the best place for them. But work is ongoing, she said, around re-location.