Tom Parlon (Laois-Offaly, Progressive Democrats)

The steering group's recommendations were accepted by the executive board of the former North Eastern Health Board in late 2004. The HSE has informed the Department that it does not intend to review the steering group's recommendations in respect of surgical services.

The steering group recommended that major and emergency surgery should be carried out in Cavan General Hospital and that Monaghan General Hospital should provide selective elective surgery. The report's recommendations reflect advice from the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland. In accordance with the recommendations of the steering group, a full surgical team based in Cavan will provide services at Monaghan General Hospital, in the form of selective elective surgery on a Monday to Friday basis.

The HSE has also recently appointed a non-practising lead consultant surgeon at the Cavan-Monaghan department of surgery whose remit is to oversee an implementation plan arising from the RCSI's advice on the future configuration of surgical services in Cavan and Monaghan. Measures to achieve this include the appointment of surgeons to fill existing or forthcoming vacancies. All these posts will be structured, eight sessions at Cavan Hospital and three sessions at Monaghan Hospital.

In accordance with the steering group's recommendations, the hospital returned to 24-hour seven-day medical cover in January 2005. A third consultant physician has been in post since November 2004 and five new anaesthetic non-consultant hospital doctors have been recruited to facilitate the return of the hospital to medical on-call. The arrangements, which I have outlined and which are being put in place by the HSE, are designed to enhance the overall level of surgical services across the Cavan/Monaghan hospital group.

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