War of words over cervical-screening service

The National Cancer Screening Service (NCSS) has expressed concern over comments made today by Fine Gael health spokesman Dr …

The National Cancer Screening Service (NCSS) has expressed concern over comments made today by Fine Gael health spokesman Dr James Reilly.

Dr O’Reilly said the new CervicalCheck screening programme unveiled yesterday would not be available for a number of weeks and that some GPs who had signed up for the scheme had not been supplied with the necessary kits.

But NCSS chief executive Tony O’Brien rejected the claims this afternoon, saying Dr O’Reilly’s comments could be perceived as a “calculated effort to undermine confidence in the National Cervical Screening Programme for narrow political gain”.

"If Dr Reilly had taken the time to actually read the statement issued yesterday by the NCSS in relation to the availability of the programme for women, or the wide press coverage of it, he would have noted that the NCSS anticipates that national coverage of participating GPs and medical practitioners will build incrementally during the coming weeks," he said.

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“We have not claimed...that full national coverage has been achieved. We have explicitly stated that the registration of GPs, practice nurses and clinics is an ongoing process with national coverage expected to increase in the coming weeks.”

Dr Reilly queried the NCSS claim that 1,450 GPs, practice nurses and clinics have registered to provide the free smear tests, saying only 306 appear on the Cervical Check website.

Mr O’Brien said Dr Reilly was being misleading.

"Dr Reilly also questions the figure of 1,450 registered smear takers which he compares to the 306 GP practices currently listed on the CervicalCheck website. This is plainly misleading. Dr Reilly is well aware that larger practices are registering seven or more smear takers,” he said.

Mr O’Brien said Dr Reilly was welcome to contact him to discuss his concerns.