New patient safety laws to be approved by end of year, Taoiseach says

Taoiseach Micheál Martin at Government Buildings, Dublin (Michelle Devane/PA)

New laws giving patients the right to their health records should be approved by the Dáil before the end of the year, the Taoiseach has said.

Micheál Martin also said the Government is trying “flat out” to ensure the national cervical screening laboratory at the Coombe Hospital, Dublin, becomes operational by the end of the year.

The Fianna Fáil leader told the Dáil Vicky Phelan’s legacy will be “more effective and more respectful” treatment for the women who come after the late cervical cancer campaigner.

Mr Martin said he agreed “wholeheartedly” with Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald that politicians from all political parties should work together to ensure the patient safety legislation can be enacted as soon as possible.

Cervical cancer campaigner Vicky Phelan (Niall Carson/PA)

The Patient Safety Bill, which has cleared committee stage in the Oireachtas, is due before the Dáil early next month.

It will legislate for a number of important patient safety measures.

Ms Phelan, who died on Monday from cervical cancer, had actively campaigned for the introduction of mandatory open disclosure after taking a High Court case in 2018 over how her cervical smears tests were handled.

“There was agreement among the parties at committee stage that at report stage that an agreed amendment would come forward in respect of full disclosure,” Mr Martin said.

“In my view there has been a lot of different perspectives within the health professional community for a long, long time, although many would support the duty of candour, and the spirit of the idea and principle of candour in respect of full disclosure to patients.

“I had discussions with the Minister (Stephen Donnelly), he’s indicating to me that working with the Attorney General’s office that we will have that amendment prior to the end of the year, and we’ll work with all parties to see how we can bring this to a conclusion.”

During Leaders’ Questions, Ms McDonald questioned the Taoiseach over when the national cervical screening laboratory at the Coombe in Dublin would become operational.

She said one of Ms Phelan’s ambitions was to bring screening back to Ireland.

Sinn Fein’s Mary Lou McDonald (Damien Storan/PA)

“It was a massive, massive, in fact catastrophic error for the laboratory service and for screening not to be carried out in this jurisdiction,” Mrs McDonald said.

She called on the Taoiseach to confirm that the new lab will not just provide additional capacity and that “we work for sufficient capacity, that screening in its entirety can happen here in Ireland”.

Mr Martin said the laboratory would provide “enhanced capacity to meet the future needs of the precious practice screening programme” and that it would be the national base for training, education and research purposes.

“The building works for the new laboratory are completed in October of this year,” he told the Dáil.

“It’s expected to become operational by the end of the year.”

He added: “Work is flat out seeking to get that done before the end of the year.”