To ask the Minister of Health to detail how his Department and the Health and Social Care Trusts are accounting for travel to and from charitable hospices in future patient transport planning, to ensure equitable access to palliative care services.

The provision of non-emergency transport to facilitate individuals to access health and social care services is determined by a medical practitioner who carries out an assessment of an individual’s transport needs, as set out in Chapter Three of “The Transport Strategy for Health and Social Care Services in Northern Ireland”.

The published Strategy is accessible at:

https://www.health-ni.gov.uk/publications/transport-strategy-health-and-social-care-services-northern-ireland

Patients travelling to or from hospices are not treated any differently to those patients travelling from their own homes or from a hospital setting.

The current transport strategy dates back to 2007 and it is my intention to initiate a review of the policy this financial year, subject to available resources. As part of that review, the needs of all service users will be considered.