AN IRISH MEP has called on the governments of EU states to share their information on healthcare.
Colm Burke of Fine Gael said the EU’s healthcare services should be cross-border.
Speaking at a conference entitled “Your Health and Europe” in Charleville, Co Cork, on Saturday, Mr Burke said everyone would benefit from a system in which medical treatments and theories were freely shared.
The MEP said Irish people would receive better healthcare through pooled resources and information.
“We live in an information age, where information flows freely and can be shared across borders. I have organised this conference today to examine how we can improve our health system by giving patients the right to find the best treatment for their condition, regardless of where they live.
“Sharing medical information is crucial, especially for a small country like Ireland, where we do not have resources to treat some of the rarer diseases and where there are often long waiting lists for procedures that can make a real difference to a person’s life’’, Mr Burke said.
Mr Burke, who hosted the conference, is himself the beneficiary of cross-border healthcare having received a pioneering Swedish treatment for a tumour at the back of his brain stem in Sheffield.
He said he was lucky enough to be able to afford the considerable cost involved in receiving this treatment.
“Now it is my goal to ensure that those who are not in such a financial situation will have the same chance that I did. Everyone should have the right to receive the best treatment close to home.
“However, this is not always possible. Therefore, rather than suffering the misery of sitting on a waiting list for treatment, we should encourage patients to look for high-quality treatment delivered on time should they so wish.”
He added that sharing of information was not just about travelling abroad for treatment but that it also concerned a sharing of best practice.
Mr Burke plans to commission a report on cross-border healthcare in the coming months.
