Question Time: Health, Social Services and Public Safety Tuesday 09 June 2015
Health
Minister, Simon Hamilton, discussed the prospect of health service reform
during today’s Question Time. Members expressed concern over the service in
light of the Chief
Medical Officer’s report that changes are required. The Minister agrees
with the Chief Medical Officer’s comments saying “The Chief Medical Officer and
I are in agreement about the need for reform. His comments reflect the findings
of reports like Transforming Your Care and, more recently, that by Sir Liam
Donaldson. His report is clear that reform of health and social care services
is required to meet the future health and social care needs of the citizens of
Northern Ireland. ”. Mr Hamilton made it clear that he intends to foster
an environment of innovation and constant change for the better. A strategic
leadership group has been formed to support this culture with person-centred
care as the focus of reform.
Brenda Hale
asked the Minister about the steps being taken to tackle rates of suicide in
Northern Ireland. Mr Hamilton said that suicide prevention programmes are
regularly updated to keep up with internationally emerging evidence for best
practice. Suicide prevention services and initiatives include: Lifeline crisis
de-escalation; counselling; training and awareness raising; improved in-patient
safety; psychiatry services in hospital emergency departments; bereavement
support; suicide cluster emergency response; local research; the self-harm
registry; mental health crisis response teams; and self-harm intervention. Suicide
rates have not fluctuated greatly since 2006 and the Minister believes that the
fact that they have not risen during the economic downturn may be a positive
sign that initiatives are working. He did however counter that “rates can
fluctuate from year to year, and, given the very wide range of influences on
suicidal behaviour, it is not possible to assess the impact of a single
strategy on suicide rates.”
Throughout
Question Time the Minister also addressed topics such as the GP unit at Bangor
Community Hospital, the minor injuries unit in Armagh and grants awarded to the
community and voluntary sector.
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