Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The Minister and I have discussed the scandal of lengthening hospital waiting lists on many occasions. Thanks to the very great efforts of campaigners such as the Scoliosis Advocacy Network and staff in RTE, this issue has been highlighted. It is only a tiny part of what we now refer to as the "waiting list scandal". As the Minister is aware, the Government has presided over that scandal as it continues to worsen. As is the form with this Government, people who get the opportunity to appear on RTE then find themselves in a situation where they get an answer to some of the questions they have been asking. The Minister is looking at me quizzically but he knows that is true because it has happened on more than one occasion. I accept fully the Minister's bona fides and that he stated he regrets that this has happened. The Minister went on to say that this matter would now be a priority for the Government. I am at a loss to know what would be happening if it was not a priority for the Government, but I welcome that the Minister has set himself a target.

One aspect of the target to which I refer is a reliance on outsourcing some procedures, as I understand it, to two facilities in England and one facility in Germany. Five children have travelled to England to have procedures. Those children were on a waiting list of 300, so what is happening does not exactly represent making significant progress. Five children have had procedures but, to date, the Minister has not signed a co-operation agreement with the other two facilities - the second one in England and the one in Germany - which means that we are at least three months away from any child being able to access the relevant services. It is not simply a case that the Minister can snap his fingers and these children will be transferred.

I have some fairly particular questions to ask the Minister. The first relates to the theatre in Crumlin, which is only open three days a week. That is an scandal. If this matter was a genuine priority for the Government, that theatre would be open seven days a week to take account of the 300 children who are awaiting surgery. I ask the Minister specifically what can be done for those children who have been transferred from Crumlin to the Mater and then back again. It strikes me that is a way to massage the figures. Those patients disappear off the list in Crumlin and they do not appear for a while on the list in the Mater. When they do appear on the list in the Mater, they are then told they have to go back to Crumlin because they are not suitable for treatment in the Mater. That is cruel. Those patients have been waiting for years, notwithstanding the fact that it takes two years to even get an appointment. It strikes me that there is not a plan in place that will, by the end of the year, deliver on the commitment that no one will have to wait four months for treatment. I say this because it will take at least three, if not four, months to get these children to either Germany or England. Their parents have not even received letters initial appointments.

What will the Minister do for those children who are waiting. What will he do, specifically, for the 68 children who have conditions that are medically complex? These are not spinal fusion cases. I understand that the majority of the spinal fusion cases will be dealt with through outsourcing. The Minister knows well my views on that and I will not repeat them. However, what will happen to the 68 children to whom I refer? The theatre in Crumlin is only open three days each week. They are being shuffled around from Crumlin to the Mater and to Cappagh and then back to Crumlin. This is not fair. If the Minister has a plan, I ask him to outline it. If the targets are not going to be achieved, he should be at least honest with those children and their families.

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