Mary Upton (Dublin South Central, Labour)
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Question 116: To ask the Minister for Health and Children her views on recommendations from the Association of Anaesthetists of Great Britain and Ireland to introduce a nationwide, 24 hour, seven day hospital transfer service for critically ill patients between hospitals; the procedure that is in place for these patients; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29544/06]

Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)
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I am aware of the report referred to in the question which calls for retrieval teams to be put in place to transfer critically ill patients between hospitals. The current position here is as follows. A Mobile Intensive Care Ambulance Service (MICAS) is in place to facilitate the transfer of critically ill adult patients for intensive care and other specialist health care services. The service is operated jointly by a number of hospitals in Dublin and by the HSE Ambulance Service.

A co-ordinating Consultant is designated for the week of service by a participating hospital. This is usually the Intensive Care Consultant on duty. The MICAS is staffed by an Intensive Care doctor (usually an Anaesthetist) and a staff nurse from the participating hospital.

Generally the MICAS operates during normal business hours but the service often extends beyond these hours. Although the service caters predominately for adult patients, a small number of paediatric patients are catered for at the discretion of the duty co-ordinating consultant.

In addition to the MICAS, a Neo-Natal Transport Programme (NNTP) operates as a rapid response service for the stabilisation and transportation of premature and ill neonates up to six weeks of age. It currently operates from 9am to 5pm seven days a week. The service is operated by the three maternity hospitals in Dublin on a rotational basis in conjunction with the HSE Ambulance Service. A designated neo-natal nurse and a neo-natal registrar are available daily.

The HSE has advised my Department that proposals are being developed to extend the hours of operation of both services and to introduce a national MICAS retrieval service for children.

In addition to the ground ambulance service, arrangements are in place with the Air Corps for the provision of emergency inter-hospital patient transport services. A Service Level Agreement is in place between the Department of Defence, the Department of Health and Children, the Health Service Executive, the Defence Forces and the Air Corps. It sets out the range of services to be provided by the Air Corps, specifically:

Inter-hospital Transfer for spinal and serious injury and illness

Air Transport of Neonates requiring immediate medical intervention in Ireland

Air Transport of patients requiring emergency organ transplant in the UK

Air Transport of Organ Harvest Teams within Ireland

Air Transport of patients from offshore islands to mainland hospitals where the Coast Guard service is not available.