Michael Fitzmaurice: Plea to Minister over rehab delays

Go raibh maith agat, Ciann Comhairle. Tánaiste, shortly after Christmas, while we were classed as a fit young woman, 39 years of age, was in a gym and had a loan. When she came out with her two young children, she fell to the ground. I want to compliment the paramedics, the Air Ambulance, and the Borista Beaumont Hospital where there was a bleed to the brain. I want to compliment Beaumont Hospital for all the work they've done. They've stabilised her, done a lot of work. Unfortunately, walking, speech and language, and one side was affected by it, so physio rehabilitation was required. They were told that Dun Laoghaire was an option. Waits are so long. Then we're looking at Clontarf. Then Peamount was out of the area. And unlike what goes on in here a lot, I want to be a bit different in the bickering sometimes that goes on. I want to compliment my constituency colleague, Dr Merton Daly, because both of us know the family. This isn't about votes or politics. This is about two people working together that have the interest of a young person with young children at heart that has been left now in a situation that is very difficult. What has happened since is that it's the HSE systems we're frustrated with. The system is that Beaumont cannot transfer a person to Merlin Park. You have to go through another hospital in the west of Ireland, like St Banliss Low, and in fairness to Deputy Daly, with calls he has made, the girl has been transferred to Banliss Low. But it's a horrific situation. An insurance company has walked away, first of all, from insurance that the lady had. But on top of that, this woman is trying. Every day her husband goes up and they go for walks. She is powered and on, so determined to make a full recovery. But the problem is the bed space, speech and language, physio. And I am asking you, will you work with us? Will you get your Minister for Health to work with us? Because this needs resolving of someone that has gone through a tough situation, determined, fit young person, 39, a fit young person that wants to make sure a full recovery, has worked all her life, husband works all her life. And they are every day in the hospital trying to defeat the hard situation that they came through. She walks with a Zimmer frame, then she threw that away and has walked on her own. The hand needs help. The speech and language is the big one. And once again, I want to compliment my constituency colleague for the work he has done, because I might know a lot about agriculture, but I will have to hand it to him on health in the way he guides you. And this isn't about me or him or anybody else. This is about a person, a human being with young kids, seven and eight, that we want to see a future that makes them better, that gets what they require and what they need. And I am asking you to help us in that situation. Well, you know a lot more about just agriculture, so that's important. You know about being a decent human being as well. And I want to thank you for the way you're approaching this issue and working with your colleague, Deputy Dr. Martin Daly, as well. That's one of the finest contributions I've heard in a while. I obviously don't know the young woman you're talking of, but I can only imagine the absolute nightmare that she, her husband, her young children and their wider family have endured. And I hope one day, when she recovers, I do get to meet her, because she sounds like she has an extraordinary determination on her recovery journey. And as we all know, without knowing anything about the clinical situation, as we all know, the progress that people can make after the most incredible injury is quite remarkable. But I appreciate and will pass on the praise that you've levelled on the Air Ambulance and Bowman's Hospital and many interactions that the woman has had with the health service. But the short answer is I will absolutely ask the Minister for Health to engage with yourself and Deputy Daly in relation to this woman's pathway of care and what can be done. As a rule of thumb, I suppose we don't comment on individual clinical plans in the Dáil for good reason, but I can certainly ask that the Minister engage with both of yourselves and ask that the HSE engage as well. It sounds, based on what you're saying, like a lot of progress has been made, but there's clearly pinch points and key areas. You've referenced the speech and language therapy, physio and other areas as well. I'm hoping the transfer, I think you mentioned about the slow that's happened, I think. I'm hoping that that transfer helps and I'll try and work out what that means in relation to Merlin Park as well. So I think the best thing I can do, lastly in court, is ask Minister Carol McNeill to engage with both of yourselves and to also engage with the HSE in relation to this. And I want to wish the woman every good wishes. Thank you Tonister for your response. The one thing I would say is, in the overall context, for people that go through traumatic injury like that, the facility, it's not about that one person alone, it's about people right around the country to try and, you know, if you leave a person in a hospital that doesn't cater for something, well then you're holding a bed that they may be able to help someone else. That if we can put in the resources around the country. But what gets me is that in fairness to Beaumont, and I want to be so appreciative of what they've done, and all the paramedics, but when they looked at Piedmont, whatever system that goes on in the HSE, it was outside the area. But ironically a person that comes from Riscommon, that lives in the West, you would imagine that the likes of Beaumont could ring Merlin Park and say to them, can you facilitate this? But no, the systems that's in place, and you might bring this to the Minister's attention, the system that's in place, you have to go to one place and then you're in the CHO2 area to jump into the other. And that's the problem, both of us, we might not have a lot of hair left, both of us, but we are pulling our hair out, trying to get round this, to help this family, and I would thank you for your comments, I would ask you to get the Minister to please engage with us, because we want to get this person back to full health, which I believe will happen. And I really, really hope that that absolutely is the case, and certainly I'll ask the Minister to engage with both of you. But I would say just a couple of comments, the point you've made about the physical environment is a really important one, one of the happiest days I had as Taoiseach was the opening of the newly refurbished NRH, it's always been an incredible hospital in Dún Laoghaire, it's literally done, it's performed, to a layman like me, pretty much miracles in terms of what's happened with people's rehabilitation journey. But the facilities weren't where they needed to be, and for somebody who can spend a long period of time in a hospital on that journey, you need to have your bit of privacy, your space, your en-suite, access to therapy spaces, and that has made real progress. I take your points and will absolutely bring it to the attention of the Minister and the HSE in relation to the system and the need for more coordination. I mean, my own view on this is that in certain areas where they're so specialist, there needs to be a national approach where people can move seamlessly to the most appropriate place across the country, and I'll certainly ask the Minister to engage with you, Deputy Fitzmarshal, you Deputy Daly, on that as well. I want to wish the woman all the very best too.