76. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health if she will consider an independent public inquiry into scandals at Children’s Health Ireland; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [52528/25]
Sentiment score: -0.16
My first question relates to the need for a public inquiry into spinal surgeries for children with scoliosis and spina bifida at CHI. I note the Minister met Harvey Morrison Sherratt's family with the Tánaiste recently and it seems a commitment was given to an inquiry. Will the Minister inform the House as to what form that inquiry will take and what her view of the timeframe will be in the terms of reference?
Sentiment score: 0.13
There are different models but it is important that this is an inquiry. That is what families are looking for. Obviously, there are different types of inquiries. We have seen in the past where inquiries were promised and they end up being reviews and investigations, very similar to the Nayagam review which is ongoing and still has not been published. This inquiry has to be comprehensive. It has establish all of the facts. It has to look at the full range of services and it has to achieve accountability, wherever that lands us; whether that is political, within CHI or governance. We know that this is not just about surgeries. They are vital. Children were failed in relation to not getting surgeries on time. We know that. Far too many children were waiting. However, there are also issues regarding urology services, pre-care, aftercare and all of that. That has to form part of any review. It is really important for all of those children in the first instance that that inquiry happens, but it is equally important that we also invest in services and ensure in the here and now that children are getting timely access to care.
Sentiment score: 0.11
Part of the problem here is that we have had almost a decade of failure and broken promises, some of which it must be said were political promises, and in more recent times a lack of transparency from Children's Health Ireland. Those very same families the Minister has met, and those parents and advocates she would meet, have been screaming from the rooftops about governance failures at CHI for many years. Many of their children are part of what is called the Dickson report, and I know that CHI has given a reason as to why it feels that report cannot be published. I have said there is absolutely no reason the contents of that report cannot be shared with the families whose children were part of that. There is a reference to what are called "orphan" children, who are children that fell through the cracks and were not getting the appropriate care. They were not under the appropriate consultant, be it a urologist or orthopaedic surgeon, and they simply fell through the cracks. These are children with spina bifida and scoliosis who at the time were waiting for procedures. I believe that trust is at an all time low. Trust is on the floor for many of these parents and there is an awful lot of work to do to repair and restore that trust. This is why I appeal to the Minister to make sure that whatever inquiry is put in place is the most robust it can be to get answers to the questions that need to be answered and, as important, to actually put the services in so that no other child has to wait as long as Harvey, and far too many other children, did.
Sentiment score: 0.00
78. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health if she is confident that sufficient capital funding has been provided for in the national development plan to deliver elective centres, 3,000 additional acute inpatient beds, digital transformation, and the entirety of health infrastructure commitments made by the Government; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [52529/25]
Sentiment score: 0.20
Capital funding in health is really important. This capital allocation is one of the most important because it is linked to many of the big projects that are about reform of the health service. It is about more hospital beds and the 3,000 beds that were promised by the Minister's predecessor before the local elections last year. Elective hospitals have to be built, which is really important in following on from those surgical hubs and separating scheduled from unscheduled care. We have the new National Maternity Hospital. We need to develop Galway. I know there are plans for other acute hospitals in my own constituency in Waterford. I will get to those projects as well. I do not believe the capital funding is there to deliver on all of those projects so the question is: which projects are not going to be delivered because of the capital funding that is allocated up to 2030?
Sentiment score: 0.20
I do not believe that is the biggest challenge at all. It is a challenge, of course, to get projects ready and obviously they have to go through planning processes and there are other processes as well. I met with senior officials in the Department before the last general election. What they set out to us was an ask of about €13.5 billion up to 2030. What was achieved was €9.5 billion. Even looking at some of the costs, we know there is at least €1 billion, at a minimum, needed for digital transformation. We have to finish out the children's hospital which, it is estimated, will require about €300 million in addition to the current €9.5 billion allocated. The surgical hubs have to be paid for. Primary and community care facilities were estimated to be €270 million. On the 3,000 hospital beds, they average out at about €1 million each. That is €3 billion alone for those beds. Half of those beds, in my mind, will not be delivered and we will see who is right and who is wrong as all of this plays out. The new National Maternity Hospital is at a minimum of €900 million, at best, and then we are into the elective hospitals. We know from the preliminary business cases they are about €1 billion at a minimum for those four. When you add all of that up, it is well over €13 billion. It does not add up. Then the question is: what projects are not going to be delivered?
Sentiment score: 0.10
Despite all of the best efforts of people who will work in this space, even if they get them to shovel-ready, I have already outlined and done the maths. I have met with the Department. I know the money simply is not there to do all of these projects. It is a case of who is right or who is wrong when it comes to the funding. I would accept that the Minister wants as much as possible to be done, as I do, but it does come down to money. It is a case of "show me the money". If the money is there, we can do these projects. If the money is not there, whether they are shovel-ready or not, they simply will not proceed. We have seen health projects stalled. We can all give examples in our own constituencies. I have dealt with the bigger State-wide projects. In my own constituency of Waterford, we need to deliver 24-7 cardiology care, which the Minister committed to. We need to invest in the adult mental health unit. There is a need for PET scanner. There are loads of projects right across each individual hospital that will also have to be funded. They have to be taken into account when you look at all the bigger projects as well. I believe - and it is my analysis based on the discussions I have had with the Department and the HSE - that there is a funding shortfall in regard to capital. I fear that some of those big reforms, especially the elective hospitals, simply will not happen as quickly as they should because the money will not be there.
Sentiment score: 0.03
That is for 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., not 24-7.
Sentiment score: 0.00