Catherine Byrne (Dublin South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

On behalf of the Minister, I thank Deputy Tóibín for raising this matter. I wish to reassure the Deputy that the most important issue in the consideration of services for the people of Meath is to ensure patient safety and outcomes come first. I understand that the Deputy is referring to echocardiograms carried out at Our Lady's Hospital, Navan. The HSE has informed the Department of Health that approval was received for capital funding for the replacement of an echocardiogram machine in Our Lady's Hospital, Navan as part of the capital equipment replacement programme 2017. Following the appropriate procurement process, the new machine was commissioned and came into use before the end of 2017. I understand from the HSE that the replaced echocardiogram machine was decommissioned in August 2017.

The HSE has confirmed that service contracts on the old echocardiogram machine were still in place until the end of 2017 and these service contracts provide full traceability documentation which demonstrated that the machine was performing within acceptable parameters.

As the Deputy may be aware, an echocardiogram machine is a very subjective diagnostic tool and can vary for several reasons depending on the patient being reviewed. The HSE has confirmed that all echocardiograms conducted in Our Lady’s Hospital, Navan, where anomalies or visual complexities were identified were escalated for enhanced imaging and the referring consultant was informed.

Management at the hospital is satisfied that there is no requirement to recall patients who had an echocardiogram.

Regarding services generally at Our Lady’s Hospital, Navan, since 2013 the hospital has been part of the Ireland East hospital group. Every hospital in that group, large or small, has a vital role to play within their group with smaller hospitals such as Our Lady’s Hospital, Navan, managing routine, urgent or planned care locally, more complex care managed in the larger hospitals and better linkages with primary, continuing and social care. As a smaller hospital, the challenge is to make sure that Our Lady’s Hospital, Navan, provides more of the right type of services for the people of County Meath, which can safely be delivered, so that we maximise the benefit to patients. In order to ensure that the hospital continues to play a significant role in the Ireland East hospital group, it is engaged in a programme of redesign work to further integrate and enhance the role of Navan hospital as a constituent hospital within the hospital group. The Ireland East hospital group is continuing to engage closely with all interested parties to ensure that the needs of patients, staff and the local and wider communities are addressed.

On the issue of the echocardiograms, I assure the Deputy that the HSE has confirmed that Ireland East hospital group and the management at Navan hospital are satisfied, following a full review of circumstances surrounding this issue, that there is no requirement to recall patients who have had an echocardiogram in the period referred to. I reiterate that Our Lady's Hospital, Navan, will continue to play a significant role in the Ireland East hospital group in providing sustainable, safe and effective care at all approximate levels and complexity.

See this speech in context