I highlight the concerns being raised about the curtailment of the domino midwifery service at Cork University Maternity Hospital, CUMH. As the Taoiseach knows, the domino service provides midwife-led, community-based maternity care, with continuity of care from pregnancy through to birth and postnatal, providing care in the community and in the home. It has emerged in recent days that due to staff shortages at CUMH, there is likely to be redeployment of nurses and midwives from the domino services to the labour ward. The INMO has said that up to 80 nursing and midwifery posts are vacant at CUMH due to a recruitment pause imposed during the summer. The domino maternity care service provides care for up to 400 women annually, providing critical options for them in their maternity care. I strongly urge that any potential curtailment of this service be reversed and that normal levels of service be protected and provided in future. I ask the Taoiseach to take up this issue with the Minister for Health and the Department.

My understanding is that the domino scheme at Cork University Maternity Hospital remains operational and available both to women currently using the service and new patients who meet the eligibility criteria. Care is delivered through three pathways, namely, the supported care pathway, the assisted care pathway and the specialised care pathway for high-risk pregnancies led by a named consultant obstetrician. To cut to the chase, the HSE has advised that from 12 October, changes to staffing arrangements within the service will come into effect. However, the service will continue to operate. Women will continue to be able to access the scheme and patient safety will remain the overriding priority in the implementation of these arrangements. Antenatal care will continue to be delivered through the domino pathway, supported by midwives in the outpatient department. Antenatal education and support will be available through the parentcraft education programme. The HSE has confirmed that where operationally feasible domino services will continue to support women who present in labour at the birthing suite in CUMH. There is a lot more information here, which I can give to the Deputy.