Seán Crowe (Dublin South West, Sinn Fein)

I appreciate the fact that this matter has been selected for discussion. It is important for people living in the area. People are also concerned about what is happening with regard to Crumlin hospital, Temple Street Hospital and the Mater Hospital. The roll out of services affects children throughout the country and that is the reason we are focusing on it.

Major decisions are being made about children and their well-being. The difficulty for public representatives is that the people affected by the decisions are not being told what they are. They are not being given the full story. Last November, I raised a matter on the Adjournment in this regard. I spoke about the necessity for the Minister for Health and Children to respond on the proposed future development of hospital and community services in south Dublin and its hinterland. The Minister said that no decision had been made about services to be provided at the National Children's Hospital in Tallaght in the context of the national paediatric hospital and associated urgent care centres. Has any decision been made about the roll-out of those services? When will these important decisions be made? A statutory instrument has been sent to the board of Tallaght Hospital but people are still in the dark about what is proposed.

A total of 32,000 children attended Tallaght Hospital last year while 30,000 children visited Our Lady's Hospital in Crumlin. The local newspaper, The Echo, has suggested that the board of the hospital met to discuss proposals or requests to eventually move the service to the Mater site. According to the newspaper report, a prominent spokesperson said that the hospital will not be moving and that it is seeking to enhance the hospital's services, as its charter directs it to do. The hospital intends to adhere to the charter.

On 27 February 2007, the Taoiseach, when asked about the new paediatric hospital at the Mater, said that he did not envisage any changes in Tallaght Hospital, regardless of what happens. He made similar remarks at the opening of a centre in Kilnamanagh. However, this appears to contradict remarks attributed to the Minister for Health and Children, who spoke to representatives of a local action group on 16 January last. She said there would be no tertiary services at Tallaght Hospital. These services deal with serious illnesses such as heart problems, cancer and so forth. She also said there would be no secondary children's medical services at Tallaght, which cover illnesses such as tonsillitis, broken limbs, appendicitis and so forth. The Minister further stated there would be little day surgery, no children's accident and emergency service and no inpatient or overnight beds for children.

What children's services will be left in Tallaght Hospital? The area has one of the country's largest youth populations but there will be no local facility for children. As local representatives do not know and the Taoiseach and the Minister for Health and Children do not appear to know or at least are making contradictory statements on the subject, I hope the Minister will clarify the situation and erase some of the worries shared by parents and residents of the area. This issue affects not only them but people throughout the city. They are concerned about where this strategy is leading.

The people in Our Lady's Hospital in Crumlin have said publicly that they will not move to the new Mater site. A representative of the board of Tallaght Hospital, according to the report in the local newspaper, says it will not downgrade children's services at the hospital and suggests it is not moving. There is talk of a realignment and a merger of the hospital in Crumlin with the Coombe Hospital. What elements remain of the proposed roll-out of paediatric services in Dublin? The boards of the various hospitals appear to be taking a different direction from that put forward in the McKinsey report. I can quote other people on this issue. There are many contradictions in what is being said publicly and privately.

Regardless of the election, there is great concern about this issue. People have a stake in the hospital and they want to know what will happen to it. The hospital in Tallaght is an amalgamation of a number of hospitals, including the National Children's Hospital. The remarks being made by different individuals seem to suggest that thechildren's part of Tallaght Hospital will be removed.

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