Question Time: Health, Social Services and Public Safety Tuesday 10 June 2014
Great
concern for the current financial pressures faced by the Department of Health was
expressed during today’s Questions
to the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety, Edwin Poots.
Mr Poots warned that his Department “faces a considerable financial challenge
in 2014-15, with some £160 million of additional resources estimated to be
required in order to balance the books”. This funding gap exists despite
additional Executive funding and demanding saving plans put in place by the
Department. A number of bids have been made in the June monitoring round and
the Minister urges that “the Executive lend their support to this critical
investment in health and social care services”. Mr Poots added that further
pressure has been applied by the request to find a further £50m to fund
penalties arising from the stalling Welfare Reform Bill.
Paul Girvan
also asked the Minister about investment in the nursing profession. The ‘Delivering
Care: Nurse Staffing Levels in NI’ tool is being used to assess current
staffing levels, reduce the need for agency nurses and enhance the role of ward
sisters. The Department is also increasing training programmes and reviewing
the nursing and midwifery workforce in order to create a workforce plan that
will ensure it is fit for purpose for the next five years. The Minister has
also met with representatives of the Royal College of Nursing to identify and
address all their concerns.
The Minister
also answered questions on the recent payroll issues affecting the Health
Service, the ‘Blueprint for Change’ report which looks at the future of social
work and on current innovations in the Health Service. During topical questions
Mr Poots also fielded Members’ queries on the prospect of Health Department
jobs in Coleraine, concern over the legal high, Speckled Red, and the impact of
the Mental Health Capacity Bill for under-16s.
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