Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The provision of 24-7 cardiac care at University Hospital Waterford and the south east has long been debated in this House and the Minister of State, Deputy Finian McGrath, is well aware of the situation. I thank him for taking this Topical Issue. I am disappointed the Minister for Health cannot be here. There was an announcement yesterday about the delivery of a modular lab to be located at University Hospital Waterford that would perform both diagnostic and intervention procedures. The funding for this modular lab is to be included in the 2019 Estimate.

The Minister informed Members of the Oireachtas that he believes there is merit in the proposal for a modular cardiac catheterisation lab at University Hospital Waterford in order to address waiting times at the hospital and provide a better service for the people of Waterford and the south east. This is welcome. As the Minister of State is well aware, all Members from Waterford and the south east have combined and worked together on this issue but I must advise today that there is still a capacity demand issue and a very limited service of 40 hours per week in the existing lab with no service at the weekends. The Minister stated that he had received advice from the HSE and that some further work is required on the detail relating to tendering, project design work, planning, construction and commissioning. I am asking for that further detail. We need a clear timeframe and an expected delivery date.

The consultants at the hospital feel that this modular unit will greatly enhance the cardiac services they offer to the public. Having one elective and non-elective lab is now possible but it needs to be delivered as a matter of priority without any delay. I would really appreciate it if the Minister of State could give us information as to when we can expect to see this modular lab on the ground so that we can save lives.

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