Byline: BY AINE HEGARTY POLITICAL EDITOR
THE Government was blasted yesterday for missing nearly half of its targets to improve the health service.
Fine Gael claimed the department had not delivered 22 of its 49 promises to provide patients with a better service - despite getting an extra EUR1.8million to do so.
The party's deputy leader Richard Bruton said: 'The department offers no analysis of why these targets were not achieved.
'We don't even know whether the money was spent, even when the target was missed - but we do know that no money was given back.
'Yet this is supposed to be the document by which ministers and departments are accountable to the Dail.'
He added many critical targets - including 800 respite care beds for the elderly, 100 extra primary-care teams and 110,000 extra out-of-hours GP services have not been met.
Mr Bruton also lashed the Government for failing to provide eight child and teen mental health teams, not expanding cancer screening and treatment and failing to deliver 255 residential places for the disabled.
The TD added: 'This is a perfect illustration of the crazy method of budgeting and performance evaluation fostered by Fianna Fail over 11 years in Government.
'It drafts high-rhetoric strategies which are weak on targets or policy tools.'
In spring last year the department published 49 output targets to be delivered by the end of the year.
But its recently published Annual Statement reveals just 22 - 45 per cent - of these targets were not met.
Other broken promises include the extension of nursing home subvention to 1,250 additional patients, the selection of a site for a hospital in the North East, and targeted child protection services.
Health officials have also failed to implement a strategy for suicide despite the shockingly high number of young people taking their lives in Ireland.
Top 10 health shortfalls
1. The delivery of 800 respite care beds for older people
2. The creation of 100 extra primary-care teams
3. The delivery of 110,000 extra out-of-hours GP services
4. The delivery of eight child and adolescent mental health teams and associated 40-bed capacity
5. The expansion of cancer treatment and cancer screening
6. The delivery of 255 residential places for persons with disabilities
7. The extension of nursing home subvention to 1,250 additional patients
8. The selection of a site of a hospital for the North East
9. The delivery of targeted child protection and family support services
10. The implementation of a strategy for suicide
