Seán Fleming (Laois, Fianna Fail)
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1216. To ask the Minister for Health when a person (details supplied) will receive an appointment to be seen in Crumlin hospital, Dublin 12; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25288/16]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Scoliosis affects approximately 1% of children and adolescents in Ireland. The management of scoliosis is complex and is determined by the severity of the curvature and skeletal maturity.

Long waiting times for scoliosis surgery are not acceptable, and my Department has been working closely with the HSE to address services pressures, particularly in Our Lady's Children's Hospital Crumlin (OLCHC), which is the largest provider of scoliosis surgery for children and young people. Additional funding of €1.042m was allocated under the 2015 Service Plan to increase capacity at OLCHC, and an additional orthopaedic surgeon, anaesthetist, and support staff, are now in place with recruitment of a further additional orthopaedic surgeon underway. Capital funding was also provided for a new theatre on site to expand theatre capacity further, and this is currently being commissioned. The Children's Hospital Group is proactively working on nurse recruitment to support the opening of the new theatre.

The HSE Winter Initiative 2016-2017, published on 9 September, also includes funding to address adolescent and paediatric scoliosis waiting lists in Cappagh and Tallaght. My Department will continue to work with the HSE and the relevant hospitals to ensure improvements in access to spinal surgery.

Under the Health Act 2004, the Health Service Executive (HSE) is required to manage and deliver, or arrange to be delivered on its behalf, health and personal social services. Section 6 of the HSE Governance Act 2013 bars the Minister for Health from directing the HSE to provide a treatment or a personal service to any individual or to confer eligibility on any individual.

The scheduling of appointments for patients is a matter for the hospital to which the patient has been referred. Should a patient's general practitioner consider that the patient's condition warrants an earlier appointment, he or she should take the matter up with the consultant and the hospital involved. In relation to the specific case raised, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly