Colm Burke (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Dr. Hickey took early retirement, but surely this was flagged in the hospital beforehand. Why was there such a delay in advertising for a replacement? What is the HSE now doing? Considering that it took me six months to obtain a list of vacancies from the HSE, it appears that there is no national co-ordination. I asked what consultants were to retire in the following 12 months and in what number, but the HSE could not give me an answer. This is an extremely important issue which concerns long-term planning. It is clear from what has occurred that there was no long-term planning. There is none; the matter is being put on the back burner. It is no longer acceptable that there are long waiting lists. We can talk all we like about waiting lists, but until such time as we sort out the issue of consultant appointments before they arise, we will be complaining about waiting lists for the next 20 years. This matter needs to be prioritised. With regard to appointments, we are down to four consultants carrying out transplants. What incentive is going to be offered to try to bring people back from abroad to take up the vacant posts?