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

I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle. I also thank Deputy O'Rourke for raising this matter and for giving me an opportunity to update the House on the position on orthognathic surgery in St. James's Hospital as advised to me by the HSE.

Orthognathic surgery, or corrective jaw surgery, is performed by an oral and maxillofacial surgeon to correct a wide range of minor and major skeletal and dental irregularities, including the misalignment of jaws and teeth. The HSE has advised that joint orthodontic surgical clinics were provided previously in St. Columcille’s Hospital, Loughlinstown and in St. James's oral and maxillofacial surgery unit each month. Due to the resignation of the consultant orthodontist at St. Columcille’s Hospital, Loughlinstown in 2014, however, it is regrettable that it has not been possible to continue the joint clinics between the two hospitals as before. The HSE has advised me that all patients under treatment in St. Columcille’s Hospital prior to 2014 have continued their surgical and orthodontic treatment in St. James’s Hospital. The HSE has also advised that, while consultant manpower, theatre and bed capacity issues have also arisen in the St. James's oral and maxillofacial surgery unit over this period, the hospital has maintained its levels of orthognathic surgery over the past 12 months.

The HSE has advised that it is working to progress the recruitment and appointment of a replacement consultant orthodontist at St. Columcille’s Hospital. The HSE has further advised that St. James’s Hospital has been working with the national clinical adviser to the HSE acute hospital division and with the HSE primary care division to agree a pathway of care to allow increased access to orthognathic surgery to meet demand. As part of these discussions, the recruitment of two oral and maxillofacial surgery consultant posts with a specific remit for orthognathic surgery has been identified as a priority. The HSE has advised that a decision on the first of these posts is expected in the near future.

St. James’s Hospital is part of the Dublin Midlands hospital group. Any proposals for St. James’s to develop the orthognathic surgery service further will need to be considered in the context of how the role of the hospital can best contribute as part of the Dublin Midlands hospital group and with regard to resources available.

On the waiting list for orthognathic surgery in St. James’s, as the Deputy is aware, reducing waiting times for the longest waiting patients is one of this Government's key priorities. Consequently, budget 2017 allocated €20 million to the National Treatment Purchase Fund, NTPF, rising to €55 million in 2018. Among other things, the HSE is developing a 2017 waiting list action plan for inpatient day case procedures to ensure no patient is waiting more than 15 months by the end of October, as the Deputy said. A similar plan is being developed for outpatient appointments. I expect that the details of both plans will be available in the coming weeks.

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