Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour)

I am taking this Adjournment matter on behalf of my colleague, the Minister for Health and Children, Deputy James Reilly. On his behalf I thank the Deputy for raising this matter on the Adjournment.

Enhancing quality care for Ireland's children and young people is a priority for the Government. It is the primary driver for developing the new children's hospital. It is widely accepted within the paediatric health care community that the sickest children requiring access to highly specialist professionals, equipment and facilities can only be accommodated in one children's hospital in Ireland. The amalgamation of Dublin's three children's hospitals into one organisation, with a single clear governance framework, will give the required cohesion and breadth of medical sub-specialties to provide such care for Ireland's sickest children. The Government's priority is to provide the best standard of complex hospital care for children in Ireland. To further that priority the Government, as set out under our programme for Government, is committed to the construction of the new children's hospital.

In late 2005, McKinsey and Company were engaged to advise on the future strategic organisation of tertiary paediatric services in Ireland. The resulting report, Children's Health First, recommended that the population and projected demands in this country could support only one world class tertiary paediatric hospital. It further recommended that such a hospital should be located in Dublin and should ideally be located alongside a leading adult academic hospital. The McKinsey report also recommended that the new children's hospital should accommodate the secondary care needs of children in the greater Dublin area, and that it should be a central component of an integrated national paediatric service, incorporating outreach capabilities and an adequate geographic spread of emergency type facilities in Dublin.

The new hospital will benefit from improved clinical effectiveness through inter-professional working that optimises clinical resources and leads to better outcomes for children. The hospital will accommodate a mix of inpatient and day care beds which will meet the health care demands of children and young people. The configuration of these beds reflects current international best practice with more critical care and day care beds within the overall bed complement. The hospital, along with the Ambulatory and Urgent Care Centre at Tallaght, will also provide outpatient, day care and emergency services to children and young people, particularly in Dublin and surrounding areas. Since his appointment, the Minister has been having discussions with his officials and with the National Paediatric Hospital Board to brief himself on the work done on this project to date. The Minister wants to be clear about how we can best provide the hospital in the most cost effective manner while ensuring a high quality service for our children and young people.

The Minister is currently considering the evidence that has been presented to him and will make a decision, based on that evidence, as to how to proceed. In particular, the Minister wants to be satisfied that the hospital will provide the best possible clinical outcomes for children and young people; that it will be built in a location that best meets the needs of children and young people; and that the cost of building the hospital is both realistic and affordable to the Exchequer.

The Deputy can rest assured that the Minister will avoid any unnecessary delay to the development of this very important project.

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