Colm Burke (Fine Gael)
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I want to raise the issue of maternity services in Cork, of which there has been widespread coverage. There are now more than 4,000 on the waiting list for gynaecological services in Cork University Hospital and this makes up 42% of the total waiting list of the country. We opened a brand new maternity unit over ten years ago and two theatres were built. At present, one is opened for three and a half days a week while the other is not open at all. It is not available for use because staff are not available. I am looking for adequate resources to be provided. Over 8,500 babies a year are born in the maternity unit at Cork University Hospital and there are back-up gynaecology services too but the unit does not have an independent budget and is simply part of the entire budget of CUH.

We have had a number of meetings with the consultants and the Minister has met with them too. Now is the time to move on and for a decision to be made to fast-track people on the list, some of whom have been waiting for over 12 months for an appointment. It is also possible that we can use facilities in one of the other hospitals, either public or private, to do this. I am not talking about using the national treatment purchase fund because in that case patients will end up being reviewed by the consultants who are currently looking after them.

This needs to be given priority as 4,000 are waiting, many for more than 12 months. It is a matter of resources and of providing theatre nurses and staff so that one theatre can be opened five days a week and the other also opened. The latter is a longer-term issue but is needs to be addressed immediately.

Marcella Corcoran Kennedy (Offaly, Fine Gael)
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I fully recognise the need to ensure that patients have timely access to health services. The Department of Health works closely with the Health Service Executive and the national treatment purchase fund to ensure that they implement measures to reduce waiting times. Budget 2017 makes specific provision for the treatment of those waiting the longest. In this regard, €20 million has been allocated to the national treatment purchase fund, rising to €55 million in 2018. In December, the Minister, Deputy Harris, granted approval to the national treatment purchase fund for a €5 million initiative focusing on day case procedures which will aim to ensure that no patient is waiting more than 18 months for a day case procedure, including gynaecology, by 30 June 2017. The Minister has also asked the Health Service Executive to submit a waiting list action plan for 2017 in respect of both the inpatient day case and outpatient waiting lists. The focus of these plans should be to ensure that no patient is waiting more than 15 months by the end of October 2017.

This week the Minister, Deputy Harris, wrote to the Health Service Executive requesting that in developing these action plans a particular focus be given to reducing waiting times in gynaecology. I am aware that there are difficulties with waiting times for gynaecology services in Cork University Hospital in particular. On 12 January the Minister visited the hospital to meet with hospital management, south-south west hospital group management and a number of consultant obstetricians and gynaecologists.This allowed him to learn at first hand about these problems, which are in part due to staff resource challenges including those associated with recruiting theatre staff nurses. He has asked his officials in the Department of Health to work closely with the Health Service Executive and the hospital group to ensure the waiting list for gynaecology procedures is addressed as a priority in advance of his follow-up meeting. The hospital has advised that the provision of additional gynaecology operating capacity is a priority for the executive management board, as is the optimisation of operating output from theatre sessions which are already in place. In that regard, the board is working with the gynaecology department and the hospital group to maximise capacity in the theatre sessions already in place, to recruit additional theatre staff nurses to provide additional theatre time and to progress the introduction of pre-admission assessment for these patients to improve efficiencies and patient flow.

The governance structures for our maternity services are currently being remodelled with the establishment of the Health Service Executive's national women and infants health programme and maternity networks across the hospital groups. The programme will lead the management, organisation and delivery of maternity, gynaecological and neonatal services to ensure the consistent delivery of high quality care in these services and oversee the development of maternity networks. The Minister, Deputy Harris, has advised me that he expects that the new maternity network, which is currently being established in the south-south west hospital group, will ensure better coordination and utilisation of maternity and gynaecological resources across the group.

Colm Burke (Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister of State for her reply. My only concern is that a list was allowed to build up like this. My understanding is that back in 2009 there was a waiting list of over 2,900. We are now six or seven years on and we do not seem have a timeline for when action will be taken. When will the theatre be open five days a week? When will we progress to the second theatre? How can we fast-track a review of patients? The HSE needs to give us a clear timeline of when it expects action to be taken on this matter. That clarification is needed at this stage.

Marcella Corcoran Kennedy (Offaly, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Senator. I will get him the specifics as soon as I leave here this morning.