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5.2 Deputy J.M. Maçon of St. Saviour of the Minister for Health and Social Services regarding support for the work of the Sexual Health Service:
Will the Minister put on record his appreciation of the work of the Sexual Health Service and does he support the proactive work of officers of that service that have undertaken to raise the profile of the service at public events recently, such as Jersey Live and Jersey Pride?
Senator A.K.F. Green (The Minister for Health and Social Services):
I thank the Deputy for his question but I have spent an evening wondering what the supplementary might be. But to answer his question, indeed I would like to place on record my appreciation of the important work undertaken by the staff of the Sexual Health Service, also to express my support for their attendance at public events such as Jersey Live and Jersey Pride to help raise the service's profile in the Island particularly, and I mean this, among young adults. But while I am on my feet can I also acknowledge the essential work of Brook and the contraceptive service that caters for different demographics, those under-21, largely focusing on contraception and that has achieved the lowest unwanted pregnancy rate in Jersey compared with neighbouring countries. [Approbation]
- Deputy J.M. Maçon:
Thank you and I am sure the officers from both services will appreciate the words of the Minister today and it is quite right, it is about the supplementary. So will the Minister further show his appreciation of the service by ensuring that in the new hospital the service has dedicated (a) facilities, and (b) software as proposed in the 2007 and 2015 Sexual Health Strategies.
Senator A.K.F. Green:
We are straying into design. We have yet to agree the proposed hospital site but there will be a sexual health facility, whether that be in the new hospital or in the annex adjacent to the hospital, in out-patients and what we would refer to as non-hot clinics, but there will certainly be something within the hospital for those services.
Deputy M. Tadier :
I did not wish to speak. It is just the very thick bundle of written questions was leaning on the light.
- Deputy J.A. Martin of St. Helier :
Can the Minister absolutely assure the House the failure to get their health charge through will not result in this service being cut in the next few years?
Senator A.K.F. Green:
We are not about cutting services. We are about investing in services. This is what the health charge was all about, investing in services for the future and helping to share the cost between the generations of today and the generations of the future. We are one of investment, this Council of Ministers.
- Deputy J.A. Martin:
Supplementary. So the Minister's speech last week ... a couple of speeches where if they did not get this, that and the other there would be cuts, was totally inappropriate or totally misleading. Which is true?
Senator A.K.F. Green:
The Deputy is twisting my words because had one of the amendments, taking all the vacancies away, which would have resulted in £17 million being removed from my service there would most definitely have been cuts but fortunately the Members rejected that amendment.
- Deputy G.P. Southern :
On a list of potential cuts, for want of a better word, at one stage I saw a provision to cut the grant to Brook Services by 50 per cent. Was that followed through or were they saved in the end?
Senator A.K.F. Green:
Yes, but it is all in delivery of the message, is it not? There was a cut with the funding of Brook at their request because they no longer had to send an annual subscription to the U.K.
- Deputy J.M. Maçon:
I appreciate that we are still working towards the new hospital but I think it is important that the service knows where it is going. As outlined in the 2007 - 2015 Sexual Health Strategies one of the barriers identified to access to the service is a designated waiting room. Can the Minister ensure that within the new design, whether it is in the new hospital or associated building, that a designated waiting room will be provided for the service as has been highlighted as a barrier for the service by not having one currently?
Senator A.K.F. Green:
This week I met with the head of microbiology and the nurse running this area and one of the successes is the fact that people can come into a building that other people come into and, therefore, it is not obvious why they are seeking treatment in the hospital. But I do understand the need for proper facilities for people to wait in and of course that is one of the reasons why we need a new hospital. It is about patient safety and about patient dignity.