Marcella Corcoran Kennedy (Offaly, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter, which has been of concern to him for a long time. He has been consistent in raising it with the Department and the HSE on behalf of his constituents.

Sligo University Hospital is currently served by a mobile cardiac catheterisation laboratory which provides services on one day per week for elective procedures. In terms of cardiac services in the north-west region, a cross-Border cardiology service was established in early May 2016, which provides emergency primary PCI services for the treatment of patients from County Donegal with a diagnosed heart attack. at Altnagelvin Area Hospital in Derry. From May through to 20 December 2016, 23 patients from County Donegal received treatment under the scheme. Following admission and emergency treatment in Altnagelvin Area Hospital, patients are repatriated to Letterkenny University Hospital or Sligo University Hospital, depending on which is closer to their homes. The new service runs very efficiently and is of major benefit to very sick patients living in the north-west region.

Any proposal for the further development of cardiac catheterisation laboratory services at Sligo University Hospital must first be considered from a hospital group perspective and in the context of planning for the cardiology needs of the population cared for by the Saolta University Healthcare Group. During 2017, each hospital group will he required to develop a strategic plan setting out how it proposes to organise services to provide optimal care to the population it serves and how it will achieve maximum integration and synergy across local health services, including primary and community care. The Department of Health has developed a draft document, Guidance on Developing Hospital Group Strategic Plans, which will he circulated to hospital groups in due course. In addition, any further development of cardiac catheterisation services at Sligo University Hospital must be considered in a national context and in the light of the competing demands for scarce resources.

The Government is committed to prioritising waiting lists in 2017. Acknowledging the challenges in scheduled care provision, budget 2017 makes specific provision for the treatment of longest-waiting patients. An allocation of €20 million is set aside for the National Treatment Purchase Fund, NTPF, in 2017, rising to €55 million in 2018. In December, my colleague, the Minister for Health, granted approval to the NTPF for the first tranche of funding, in the region of €5 million, for an initiative focusing on day case procedures. The Minister has asked the HSE to develop an inpatient and day case waiting list action plan in conjunction with, and supported by, the NTPF's proposal for utilisation of the remaining €10 million of 2017 funding for patient treatment. Further, the Minister wrote to the director general of the HSE earlier this week in regard to waiting lists, with a specific request that priority be given to the development of a cardiology waiting list initiative in 2017. In the coming weeks, the Minister expects to receive a waiting list action plan from the HSE, which will include a cardiology waiting list initiative. That initiative will address cardiology waiting lists in a number of hospitals, including Sligo University Hospital.

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