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Annual Report of the Ombudsman 2005

Chapter 1: Foreword and Introduction

I herewith submit my third Annual Report to the Dáil and Seanad pursuant to the provisions of Section 6(7) of the Ombudsman Act, 1980. This is the 22nd Annual Report submitted in relation to the work of the Office of the Ombudsman since it was extablished in 1984.

Emily O'Reilly

Ombudsman

July 2006

Introduction

My first annual report in 2003 addressed the role of my Office in relation to marginalised and vulnerable people. I recall one commentator expressing surprise at this, wondering if that was not its obvious and overriding role. Yet many complaints I deal with come from people who are neither marginalised nor vulnerable, but who have simply been put at a financial or other disadvantage by the actions of the State. Conversely, many people who are marginalised and vulnerable, through age, disability or illness, have not been able to take advantage of the powers of my Office because the public body they have had difficulty with, may not have come within the remit of the Office of the Ombudsman or, in the case of those with disabilities, because the rights to particular services had not been clearly defined in legislation.

In relation to remit, the most obvious case in point concerned the health service and the fact that the country’s public voluntary hospitals did not come within the remit of this Office. This has been changed with the passing of the 2004 Health Act. Every service provider to the Health Service Executive (HSE) now comes within my remit and everyone who uses HSE services will be entitled to complain about those services once regulations governing the Act’s statutory complaints mechanism are published by the Department of Health and Children.

The Disability Act 2005 also extends my public administration role. My Office is now empowered to deal with complaints in relation to accessing public services and buildings by people with disabilities. This, together with the extended health remit, will enable the Office to play an even greater role in helping the marginalised, the vulnerable and the elderly but also in improving the health system and the system of service provision to those with disabilities.

In the health area, my Office’s handling of complaints will be guided by its recently published Statement of Best Practice for the Health Service. This was drawn up as part of my recently published report to the HSE outlining my Office’s experience to date of the health system and making recommendations for an improved service. It is my view that the patient must be at the centre of that service and that primacy must be given to patient care, patient safety, patient dignity, patient confidentiality and to the issue of informed consent in relation to treatment plans and other matters. The quality of palliative care in public healthcare institutions will also be a priority.

I greatly welcome the extension of the remit of the Office of the Ombudsman. The staff and I will do our utmost in the years ahead to make sure that we live up to the new responsibilities that have been placed upon us.

Finally, I want to thank all my staff for their continued dedication and support throughout the year. In particular, I would like to thank my Director General, Pat Whelan, and Tom Morgan, John Doyle and Dave Morrissey for their excellent work in the production of this Annual Report.

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