Donie's Ireland news update Thursday

Minister Ruairi Quinn insists that disability services at Cregg House Sligo will continue

      

Education Minister Ruairi Quinn has denied that government cuts will result in the loss of services to people with disabilities in the north-west.

It follows the announcement by the religious order the Daughters of Wisdom that they are to withdraw services at Cregg House in Sligo because of underfunding.

Cregg House provides care, education and support for more than 200 people with intellectual disabilities, but the order claims it cannot bridge the gap caused by a €1.3m cut to its HSE allocation.

The HSE said that it understands funding difficulties at the centre, but insists cutbacks are in line with those at other disability services in the region.

But Minister Ruairi Quinn told the Dáil this morning that the HSE will continue to provide the same services after the order withdraws.

“The Daughters of Wisdom know that the service will be continued and will be provided – it simply will not be provided by them,” he said.

“I would draw your attention to the fact that religious orders have in other aspects of social life in this country themselves chosen for different reasons to withdraw from the provision of service,” he said.

He said he could assure the people who depend on these services, that based on what had been told Minister of State Kathleen Lynch, that the services would continue.

The Minister was responding to queries from Fianna Fáil Spokesperson on Children Charlie McConalogue, who raised the matter during Leader’s Questions in the house.

“The way the Daughters of Wisdom and the 214 users and their families are being treated is a national scandal,” the Donegal North East deputy said.

“Why would there be a conscious decision to deplete funding being provided by the Daughters of Wisdom particularly when they have served the community for the last 60 years?”

“We all know that efficiencies are necessary and that more must be achieved with less resources,” Deputy McConalogue added.

“But the obvious underfunding of essential front line services the north-west by this Government is simply indefensible, and should be immediately reversed.”

Sister Jean Quinn of the Daughters of Wisdom said that the order had run the service for more than 60 years.

“It’s a very difficult morning for us and has been a very difficult few days,” she told Ocean FM

“We finally made our decision in our administrative office in England on Monday.

“The decision… is not made out of choice, but out of necessity.”

Meanwhile Sinn Féin TD for Sligo/North Leitrim Michael Colreavy expressed disappointment over the breakdown in talks between the management of Cregg House and the HSE.

“The HSE must now step up to the mark and take full responsibility for Cregg House,” Deputy Colreavey said.

“However, the handling of the Cregg House issue by the HSE has, so far, been a failure.

“The patients of Cregg House should be a priority and the high standard of service that has been provided by the Daughters of Wisdom must be continued by the HSE.”

Westlife’s Shane Filan’s company is declared bankrupt in The UK

The Boyband star has lost millions after the Ireland property crash

The singer, whose band have sold over 44 million records during their career, was declared insolvent earlier this week at Kingston County Court in Surrey after admitting that he could not pay his debts.

Despite a successful singing career, Filan’s property company, which is based in the Republic of Ireland, has endured a torrid time and went into receivership last month.

Filan has issued a statement, in which he says that filing for bankruptcy had been a difficult decision to take but he had “exhausted all other options”.

He went on to say: “Together with a team of financial and legal experts I have spent months exploring all possible alternatives to bankruptcy but to no avail. I have worked long and hard to try to reduce my debts, and I am devastated that it came to this conclusion.”

He continued: “I now intend to focus on the remaining dates of the Westlife tour and my commitments to the band before looking to rebuild a future for my wife, my three children and myself.”

Westlife announced that they were splitting up earlier this year and will end their 14-year career with a huge outdoor show at Ireland’s Croke Park on June 23.

AIB are to cut salaries of its top executives, & freeze staff pay until 2014

  

Allied Irish Bank is cutting the pay of its senior management and will introduce a pay freeze for all staff until 2014. Top executives at the bank are to get a 15% pay cut.

All other managers and executive staff will see their pay decrease by between 7.5% and 10%.

Staff in the defined benefit pension fund are being transferred to a defined contribution pension scheme.

The bank is also scrapping a number of perks for all staff including gym and club subscriptions and preferential rates on loans and deposits.

In an internal e-mail seen by Newstalk chief executive of AIB David Duffy said the cost to income ratio for the bank was unsustainable in the current economic environment.

“It is imperative that the cost base of the bank is sufficiently aligned with the overall operating performance to attract external investors” he said.

“A number of sacrifices have already been made by employees to help meet this cost imperative” he added.

It goes on to say that all members of the Executive Committee have agreed to a 15% reduction in total compensation from August 1st.

A reduction of up to 10% in salary and pay-related allowances will apply to those in Executive roles with a reduction of up to 7.5% in salary and pay-related allowances for those in Senior Manager.

It adds that all proposed reductions will be based on a benchmark exercise that will be completed in the final quarter of this year.

New cancer vaccine breakthrough using ‘cold virus’ Scientists claim

Scientists claim to have overcome a major hurdle in their work on finding a way to wipe out cancer with viruses.

    

Scientists suggest the reovirus, which usually causes mild colds or stomach upsets, has the power to shrink tumours.

They have created the viral vaccine that can be injected into the bloodstream, “hitching a ride” on blood cells and avoiding the immune system.

Previous research has focused on injecting the virus into tumours.

The reovirus treatment acts both like chemotherapy and a vaccine. It kills tumour cells while at the same time causing an anti – cancer immune response.

Dr Kevin Harrington, from the Institute of Cancer Research in London who co – led the study, said: ”Viral treatments like reovirus are showing real promise in patient trials.”

”This study gives us the very good news that it should be possible to deliver these treatments with a simple injection into the bloodstream.

It would have been a significant barrier to their widespread use if they could only have been injected into the tumour, but the finding that they can hitch a ride on blood cells will potentially make them relevant to a broad range of cancers.”

He added: ”We also confirmed that reovirus was specifically targeting cancer cells and leaving normal cells alone, which we hope should mean fewer sideeffects for patients.”

Scientists had feared that immune system antibodies in the blood would mop up the viral particles, preventing them from reaching their target.

Instead, the viruses evaded the immune system by hitching a ride on red blood cells. The discovery could pave the way to viral therapies one day becoming a standard form of cancer treatment.

Dr Julie Sharp, from the charity Cancer Research UK which part-funded the research, said: ”This promising study shows that reovirus can trick the body’s defences to reach and kill cancer cells and suggests that it could be given to patients using a simple injection.

”We look forward to seeing how this research develops and if this could one day become part of standard cancer treatment.”

The research involved a small group of 10 patients with bowel cancer tumours that had spread to the liver. Patients were given up to five doses of reovirus over a period of a few weeks before they were due to have surgery.

Blood tests shortly after the treatment showed the active virus associated with blood cells. Tissue removed during surgery revealed ”viral factories” in the tumour, but not normal liver tissue.

Reovirus is an extended family of viruses including rotavirus, which can cause stomach upsets.

The study was published in the journal Science Translational Medicine.

Donie's news Ireland Blog Monday

Venus crossing the Sun is a rare spectacle not to be missed

   

The crossing of Venus across the face of the Sun is such a rare and spectacular event that in 1769 Captain James Cook sailed the HMS Endeavour half way around the world to witness it.

In two days we will have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to view the phenomenon, which has happened just three times since the 18th Century, from their own homes this week.

Early on Wednesday morning the planet – usually one of the brightest lights in the night sky – will be clearly visible as a black disc slowly passing against the background of the rising Sun.

The transit of Venus, one of the most impressive and eagerly anticipated events in the astronomical calendar, will mainly take place during night-time in Britain but can be viewed during its final stages for about an hour immediately after sunrise.

In other parts of the world such as Hawaii and Australia the entire six and a half-hour spectacle will be visible and observatories around the world will live stream the event over the internet.

Members of the public can view the transit without a telescope but must wear protective "eclipse glasses" or use a piece of paper with a pin prick in it to project an image of the transit onto a screen behind them, experts warned.

Looking at the sun with the naked eye or even through a camera lens risks causing permanent eye damage and even total blindness.

Wednesday will mark only the sixth time the event has been witnessed since the invention of the telescope more than 400 years ago, although it was also documented by the Babylonians and by the ancient Greek mathematician Pythagorus.

It will also be the last chance for virtually anyone alive today to see it. The last transit was in 2004 but because the events always occur twice in quick succession before gaps of more than 100 years, next week's crossing will be the last until 2117 and the last to be visible in Britain until 2125.

During the 18th and 19th centuries explorers including Captain Cook sailed across the globe to watch transits take place from widely separated locations so that they could combine their observations and calculate the distance between the Earth and the Sun.

Modern-day astronomers will use the rare opportunity to test methods designed to study the atmosphere of planets in other solar systems, which can only be done as they cross in front of their own suns.

By testing their equipment on the familiar territory of Venus, scientists will be able to learn how reliable it is and fine-tune it for use in the search for life elsewhere in the Universe.

Ireland’s Manufacturing output increased with new orders for May 2012

   

Manufacturing activity gained pace in May as output and new orders rose, and employment continued to expand.

The NCB Purchasing Manufacturers Index (PMI), which provides a measure of the health of the sector, climbed to 51.2 in May following April’s reading of 50.1. Output for the month reached 51, compared with April’s 48.7, and was the third rise in the past four months.

New orders were 51.1, the fourth increase in a row, with export orders remaining solid at 52.9 despite growth slowing.

Employment showed a rise for the third consecutive month, expanding to 54.4.

“Increased workloads encouraged companies to take on extra staff, and the rate of job-creation was solid during the month,” the report said.

Central Statistics Office data showed there was a 2.4 per cent increase in industrial employment in the final quarter of 2011.

“The evidence from the PMIs would suggest that this trend has continued into Q1 2012,” said NCB chief economist Brian Devine.

However, input prices continued to rise, slightly slowing from April, as manufacturers encountered higher costs for fuel and other oil-related products.

“Strong competition largely prevented firms from passing on increased costs to clients, however, and prices charged were reduced fractionally,” NCB said.

Suicide rise in Ireland is linked to the Recession ‘says new study’

   

A staggering rise in the number of Irish men taking their own lives is clearly linked to the recession, according to a leading expert on mental health.

Figures released yesterday by the CSO confirm research showing that 80% of those who take their own lives in Ireland are men, many of them in their 30s.

The CSO Report on Vital Statistics for 2009 shows 443 male suicides that year, a 15% increase on 2008. In contrast, female suicide deaths fell by 9%.

The report tallies with a study by the National Suicide Research Foundation which looked at 190 cases of suicide in Cork City and county between Sep 2008, when the economy imploded, and Mar 2011. 

It found that the victims were predominantly men, with an average age of 36.

“It wasn’t a coincidence. Almost 40% were unemployed, and 32% worked in construction,” said NSRF research director Ella Arensman.

“Our study shows and the CSO figures confirm that suicides among men in Ireland rose sharply as the economy went into severe recession.”

Describing the huge rise in male suicide as “shocking and extraordinary”, Ms Arensman said that, in all her years conducting research into suicide and self-harm, she had never seen such a strong correlation between economic difficulties and mental health.

“I have been working in this area for a long time. Before our analysis, I would have expected some effect from the recession but my expectations were doubled. I have never witnessed such a fast effect of recession on so many aspects of life.

“Although there are often underlying causes like alcohol abuse [or] relationship problems, it is clear that the recession is largely responsible for this increase.”

Greece and Italy also showed heightened rates of suicide between 2007 and 2009 when economic hardship took hold in those countries.

“Financial crisis puts the lives of ordinary people at risk, but much more dangerous is when there are radical cuts to social protection,” said David Stuckler, a sociologist at the University of Cambridge, who led a study that found a sharp rise in suicides in European countries badly hit by recession.

His study of suicide trends in Europe shows an increase since 2008 in all countries except Austria. Ireland and Greece, the two countries that experienced the most severe economic downturns, also recorded the largest increase in suicide rates — up 15% in Ireland and up 17% in Greece.

“Austerity can turn a crisis into an epidemic,” said Mr Stuckler, whose research paper was published in British medical journal The Lancet.

Health Minister Reilly attempts to increase his adviser’s salary

DESPITE NEW RULES ON SPECIAL ADVISERS?   HOWLIN V O’REILLY 

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Minister for Health Dr. James Reilly has made several attempts over recent months to secure a higher pay scale for one of his special advisers.

The Minister has also made applications for a higher pay rate for his personal secretary.

In April last year Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform Brendan Howlin approved the appointment of Seán Faughnan as a special adviser to Dr Reilly for six months on a salary of €80,051 – the first point of the pay scale for principal officers in the Civil Service.

It is Government policy that special advisers should be paid at this rate, except with the approval of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform.

In June of last year, Dr Reilly sought to have Mr Faughnan’s salary increased to €92,672, the maximum point of the principal officer’s pay scale.

Last October Dr Reilly sought to extend Mr Faughnan’s appointment “because of the important work he is engaged on in relation to the implementation of the Government’s programme of reform in the health sector”.

In his letter to Mr Howlin, Dr Reilly in effect suggested restructuring his team of special advisers. He proposed that Mr Faughnan would work on a one-third basis in the future and suggested appointing the former chief executive of the Northern Area Health Board, Maureen Windle, who retired in 2005 under a special severance arrangement for former health board senior management, as a special adviser on a two-thirds basis.

“Since Ms Windle has extensive experience of the health system at senior management level, I would appreciate your sanction to her appointment at the maximum point of the principal officer standard scale (€92,672) on a pro-rata basis.”

Mr Howlin approved the extension of Mr Faughnan’s contract on his existing salary, reduced to take account of the fact that he would be working fewer hours.

However, Mr Howlin, in a letter to Dr Reilly last November, refused to sanction Ms Windle’s appointment.

“Government policy is that there should be a maximum of two special advisers per minister and that advisers should normally be appointed on the minimum of the principal officer’s scale.

“Her appointment would mean that you would have three advisors, albeit the equivalent of two on a whole-time basis. However, from a public perception it is likely that it would be seen as three advisers,” Mr Howlin wrote.

Mr Howlin also maintained that the combined job-share salary for Mr Faughnan and Ms Windle, proposed by Dr Reilly, would be above the approved rate for the post – the minimum point on the scale.

The Department of Public Expenditure and Reform later indicated that Mr Howlin would be prepared to sanction a job-share arrangement on a combined salary of €80,051 “with appropriate pension abatement for Ms Windle”.

However, Mr Howlin was subsequently given a hand-written letter on the notepaper of the office of the Minister for Health requesting Mr Faughnan be appointed on a salary of €92,000. The note also proposed that this salary should be backdated to his original appointment the previous April and also proposed Mr Faughnan and Ms Windle should job-share on a combined salary of €92,000 – the same terms which had been previously rejected by Mr Howlin.

It is understood Dr Reilly made further representations to Mr Howlin last week in an attempt to resolve the dispute over the pay rate for Mr Faughnan and Ms Windle.

Separately, it is understood Dr Reilly sought approval from Mr Howlin to increase his personal secretary’s pay from €456 per week – the first point on the scale – to €746, the eighth point.

A spokesman for Dr Reilly said it had been the Minister’s “consistent view that the quality of the advice and expertise provided by Seán Faughnan should attract the higher end of the . . . scale”.

“As you know Seán Faughnan has remained in place . . . Discussions will now centre on reaching agreement to allow Maureen Windle assume the full-time position as policy adviser.”

Sligo IT Students make DVD about same-sex parents

      

Two students at Sligo Institute of Technology who have made an educational video for small children about same-sex parents hope to generate a debate about the rights of non-traditional family units.

Katie Young (22), from Ballinode, Co Sligo, and Grace Hughes (23) from Cross, Co Mayo,

believe a legislative amendment is necessary to widen the Constitution’s definition of the family.

The students, both in their fourth year of an early childhood care and education programme, have made an educational DVD, aimed at a pre-school audience.

The DVD, Emma and Charlie’s Fun Day Out, has been downloaded on YouTube.

It tells the story of two friends, Emma (6), who lives with her two mothers, and Charlie (7), who lives with his two dads.

It was made as part of a resource pack, “Modern Families”, for early years’ practitioners and junior and senior infants.

The pack includes guidelines for practitioners, posters, a board game, a story book and other play props.

The project was partly inspired by a desire to ensure that the rights of gay friends and relatives were protected.

“We don’t know how many same-sex families there are in Ireland, but even if there were only two we feel it is important for all schools to acknowledge this issue,” Ms Young said.

The students believe that as gay people become more open about their sexuality and more visible because of developments such as the civil partnership legislation, same-sex families will also become more visible.

Letting small children know about the existence of same-sex families could help counter bullying and isolation later on, the students have explained.

“Children living in traditional family units see their home life reflected in the curriculum and it is important that all children feel included,” Ms Hughes explained.

IT Sligo early childhood care and education lecturer Tamsin Cavaliero said the project was timely, given the recent introduction of civil partnership legislation.

The four-year honours programme at IT Sligo prepares graduates for work in the early-years sector, and in special needs, while some students also transfer to primary school teacher training.

Donie's Ireland news Blog Thursday

New figures show increased demand for MS Ireland services ‘A reflection of our difficult times’

        

New and recent figures issued from MS Ireland show increased demand for the organisation’s services in the first quarter of this year.

MS Ireland is calling on the  government to improve access to treatments for people with MS such as Tysabri and Gilenya. The organisation says that the drugs are “widely available” to MS sufferers in other EU countries and are used to treat relapsing-remitting MS.

Tarragh Donohoe of MS Ireland said that both drugs are considered ‘second-line’ treatment and that if people with MS are not taking those, then it’s likely they’re not getting any treatment at all.

“Tysabri is currently available on hospital budgets, but most don’t stretch to actually cover it,” Donohoe said. Meanwhile, Gilenya has been on the HSE reimbursement list “for months” but has not yet been approved for the scheme.

Donohoe said that MS Ireland believes “people should have as much choice as possible when it comes to their treatment”, but that people with MS should talk to their neurologist before starting any new treatment as the drugs have side effects.

Support: According to its report for the first quarter of 2012, the organisation provided a home visit service to 1,757 people with MS around Ireland (up from 1,524 in Q1 2011).

Over the first three months of this year, 89 people who were recently diagnosed with MS requested a home visit from MS Ireland – up from 72 for the same period of last year. The organisation also provided 234 individual physiotherapy and exercise classes, and 63 counselling and personal development sessions.

MSI’s chief executive Ava Battles says that the increased demand for services “reflects the difficult times people with MS face”.

“In addition to the nationwide impact of reduced income and cuts, people with MS also have to cope with the added expenses of living with a disability, reduced care packages, cuts in housing grants and denial of vital services, benefits and treatments.”

Battles also appealed to the public to help the organisation fundraise for the continued provision of services: “The extra demand on services means we need to fight harder for appropriate funding from the government and work harder to fundraise.”

New vomiting bug restrictions at Sligo General Hospital

  

Sligo General Hospital is restricting visitors in an attempt to stop the spread of the winter vomiting bug.

The Health Service Executive said more patients than usual were presenting with vomiting and diarrhoea, and this led to increased pressure on beds.

The HSE said visiting was permitted only in exceptional circumstances by immediate relatives and only during designated visiting times.

The vomiting bug, while rarely causing severe problems, can be debilitating to small children or older people who are already ill or infirm.

Those affected should drink plenty of fluids, maintain strict hygiene and avoid visiting hospitals or nursing homes.

If symptoms persist, patients are advised to contact their GP by phone before attending the surgery to limit the spread of the virus.

Rising Irish temperatures and rainfall recorded in the past 30 years

 

Ireland’s average temperatures have risen by 0.75 degrees over the last two decades, according to new Met Éireann figures.

The rise has been described as “significant” and in line with projections of a 3-6 degree increase in world temperatures by the end of the century.

Met Éireann’s head of forecasting, Gerald Fleming, said the increases showed there was “no argument” that the weather was getting warmer, but he cautioned against seeing that as a trend.

He said the dispute was whether this was caused by man-made carbon dioxide emissions or simple variability in climate.

The spring and summer months are significantly warmer. The south Leinster and east Munster areas have recorded the greatest average rise in temperatures.

The Irish climate is also getting wetter. Valentia Observatory in Co Kerry recorded the equivalent of a month’s extra rainfall in the 30-year period between 1981 and 2010 compared to the equivalent period between 1961 and 1990.

The west of Ireland is on average 8 per cent wetter than it was in the previous 30-year period.

It will come as no surprise, given the wet summers of recent years, that the average increase in rainfall in July across the country is 15 per cent, a figure which Met Éireann senior climatologist Séamus Walsh described as the “most surprising” of all to emerge from the new data.

July is the warmest month, followed by August and June. The coldest month is January, followed closely by February and then December.

Autumn is warmer in Ireland than spring.

Met Éireann’s climate averages for Ireland are based on 10 million pieces of data collected over a 50-year period dating back to 1961.

The long-term average temperatures of the period 1981-2010 show a 0.5 degree increase in comparison to 1961-1990, which is the baseline for measuring climate averages.

However, when the overlapping years between 1981-1990 are discounted, the difference in temperatures between the periods 1961-1980 and 1991-2010 is 0.75 degrees.

“When you look at long-term averages, 0.5 of a degree is a lot,” Mr Fleming said.

“If you look at what is being said about a rise in temperature by the end of the century, an increase of 0.5 of a degree in a 20- to 30-year period is actually quite significant.”

Overall the country has had a 5 per cent increase in rainfall between the two 30-year periods.

While the amount of rainfall in Dublin has increased by just 2 per cent, there has been a rise of closer to 8-9 per cent in the west of Ireland, with a clear east-west split in a line stretching from Cavan to Waterford.

Mr Walsh said rainfall patterns were prone to variability.

The increases in rainfall may be the result of the wet summers of 2007, 2008 and 2009 and the flood conditions of 2009 which were a once-in-500-years event for many parts of the west of Ireland.

“There is huge year-to-year variability in rainfall,” he said.

“Where you get very wet summers in the noughties, they contributed to the increases in rainfall.

“There is no evidence that there is a change in the extreme values of rainfall. We have looked at that and there are no definite trends.”

Mr Walsh said temperature was a much more stable indicator of climate change.

He said there was a “definite trend” in a decreasing number of frosty days.

Sunshine levels have showed little variability by comparison, though the sunniest parts of the country, along the east and south coasts, have seen sunshine increases of more than 5 per cent in certain months.

Big Focus on eye dangers within diabetes & the lack of awareness?

       

Over 75% of people with diabetes are unaware of a common condition that causes blindness, diabetic macular edema (DME), according to research.

DME is a form of diabetic retinopathy (DR) that causes blindness in adults with diabetes. In Ireland, one person a week goes blind from DR.

Members of Diabetes Ireland took part in the study, and the results showed that 42% of people with diabetes are most worried about eyesight problems developing, over a quarter are concerned with kidney damage and a further quarter with heart conditions.

However, one in four people with diabetes do not go to their annual eye examination, despite the fact that 42% are worried about the development of eye problems. Dr has no symptoms in its early stages, emphasing the need to attend for eye tests.

A public information evening has been arranged for tonight to raise awareness about eyesight dangers for people with diabetes, available treatment for people with DR and highlighting the importance of full eye examinations today* (May 31).

In Ireland there are over 200,000 people living with diabetes and it is estimated that about 30,000 people are undiagnosed.

To reduce the risk of vision loss diabetes must be managed carefully and people should attend all their healthcare appointments including an annual full eye examination said Kieran O’Leary, CEO of Diabetes Ireland.

A number of organisations including; Diabetes Ireland, the Association of Optometrists Ireland (AOI), the National Council for the Blind in Ireland, Fighting Blindness and the Irish College of Ophthalmologists (ICO) are hosting the information evening.

*Information Evening: VisualEYES the Risks: Managing Your Diabetes and Diabetic Retinopathy at 6.30pm, May 31 at the O’Callaghan Alexander Hotel, Dublin 2.

Chlamydia screening campaign not cost effective in Ireland ‘academics claim’

  

A National screening campaign for a common sexually transmitted infection that can cause infertility is not cost effective, academics found.

More than 6,000 men and women last year were diagnosed with chlamydia a silent infection with no symptoms that can remain undetected, untreated, and lead to complications like ectopic pregnancies.

But Ireland’s small population and the strain already on the health service means a screening programme would not be cost effective, researchers said.

Dr Emer O’Connell, consultant in public health medicine, said screening for chlamydia is available in many countries.

“However, some countries such as Australia are reviewing the effectiveness of this measure,” she said.

“In Ireland, due to our small population and the strain already on our health service, a screening programme for chlamydia would not be cost effective because it would be difficult to achieve the necessary coverage levels to reduce the level of infection.”

Chlamydia is the most commonly reported bacterial STI in Ireland, with highest numbers reported in patients in their 20s.

The number of cases has soared from 1,000 in 1997, to 3,353 in 2005, 5,781 in 2009 and 6,008 by 2011 – accounting for more than half of all STIs reported.

As it remains undetected it can spread easily and causes pelvic inflammatory disease in up to 30pc of infected women who are not treated, leading to ectopic pregnancy and infertility.

The chlamydia screening pilot study in Ireland found stigma was often a barrier that stopped young people seeking or accepting an STI test.

However, 95pc of professionals and 75pc of students would take a test if offered.

Eight out of 10 could inform their current partner if they tested positive for chlamydia, but this rate fell to 55-60pc in the case of telling previous partners.

More than 6,000 people took part in the study, funded by the HSE’s Health Protection Surveillance Centre and supported by the Health Research Board.

Dr Diarmuid O’Donovan, of NUI Galway, said the study shows how to protect the sexual health of young Irish people.

“Given these findings, a national sexual health plan should include primary prevention activities such as sex education, condom distribution and the provision of information on how to seek care for STIs,” he added.

“Therefore, we recommend the inclusion of primary care-delivered chlamydia detection and case management services as part of a national action plan to promote sexual health.”