Government lack of communication on Ebola ‘irresponsible and worrying’ – Senator Mullen

‘Serious deficiencies’ in HSE guidance and protocols / Chaotic response to Ebola scare in Dublin hospital reported recently.

Senator Rónán Mullen today warned that there may be serious deficiencies in HSE guidance and protocols supplied to hospital staff to deal with patients with possible Ebola symptoms. Senator Mullen criticised as ‘irresponsible’ the Government lack of communication with the public about its plans to deal with a possible outbreak of the disease and called for the Minister for Health, Leo Varadkar TD, to come before the Seanad on the issue.

“I find it very hard to understand how one of the Government’s first responses to questions was to warn the health unions not to exploit the issue to make points about resources and industrial relations issues,” Senator Mullen said.

“It is the Government’s responsibility to reassure the public that all necessary steps are being taken and that all staff are fully trained and equipped. Its failure to communicate beyond making a general claim of readiness is irresponsible. It’s worrying too because it suggests they may not know the full picture in the hospitals.”

“Hospital-based professionals have told me that in one large Dublin hospital there has been no training provided to A&E or other front line staff, and no ‘dry-runs’ have been implemented to date. I have also been informed that information distributed to staff so far relates to the assessment and diagnostic process as well as to the protocols to be applied by the ambulance service. But there has been no information about how to apply and remove personal protective equipment (PPE), or about supervision/observation of the removal of such equipment.”

“Is all this true, does the Minister know this, and is it a problem?” Senator Mullen asked.

“It has also been reported to me that a patient with suspicious symptoms presented to a Dublin hospital at the weekend. Ebola was eventually ruled out, but not before considerable confusion and debate regarding protocols and the plan of action as the staff treated the patient. There was an original idea to bring the patient to the Acute Medical Assessment Unit but an on-the-hoof decision was made to move the person to an isolation room in ICU. The support staff involved had no training or education about their role and protection despite the fact that they would need to be involved in non-clinical elements of the patient care process.”

“Minister Varadkar should tell us why screening at airports is right for Britain but wrong for Ireland. He should tell us whether there have been drills and dry-runs already in each hospital. He should tell us what personal protective equipment has been supplied to hospitals and whether it is of an equal standard in all cases.”

Senator Mullen said he had a list of other concerns and questions that responsible professionals were raising and he would appreciate if the Government would give an account of its stewardship to the Oireachtas as soon as possible.