Colm Burke (Cork North Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Deputy has made a very strong case in respect of his constituent. It is important that I take on board what he has said and that we continue to try to improve the services. The Minister for Health is assuring children and their families that the Government will continue to invest significant funding to help clinicians to reduce the time for which children must wait for important hospital appointments and procedures. Significant additional investment has been committed to tackle the waiting lists for spinal services by creating additional capacity.

A dedicated paediatric spinal surgery management unit has been established and it is driving improvements to the waiting lists. A dedicated stakeholder paediatric spinal task force has been convened to collaboratively address concerns raised by families and advocacy groups. We are making progress on the waiting lists for spinal surgery despite the significant increase in demand and referrals by comparison with previous years.

At the end of 2023, there had been a 13% reduction. I fully accept that we should be doing better. The reduction pertains to the number waiting over four months for spinal procedures by comparison with the number at the end of 2022.

The Minister has asked the HSE and CHI to explore all options to increase capacity for this vital service so as to reduce the waiting times and ensure improved access for patients. The Minister is committed to ensuring every child is seen within four months, as clinically appropriate. An entire team is needed to carry out the surgery in question. It is very challenging and it is important to have the best expertise in doing the work. Unfortunately, if a component is missing at any stage, a procedure cannot go ahead. The hospitals are working very hard to reduce the waiting list further.

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