Bobby Aylward (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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63. To ask the Minister for Health if additional resources will be allocated to the existing cardiac catheterisation laboratory at university hospital Waterford in order to increase the laboratory's current capacity to accommodate the estimated 450 additional procedures that will be referred there through additional diagnostic angiograms set to be provided by the mobile catheterisation lab; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27908/17]

David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein)
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105. To ask the Minister for Health the reason for the non approval to date in 2017 of a mobile cath lab for university hospital Waterford; the timeframe for approval to be made regarding same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27652/17]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 63 and 105 together.

In his review of cardiology services at University Hospital Waterford, Dr Niall Herity concluded that the needs of the effective catchment population of the hospital could be accommodated from a single cath lab. However, Dr Herity recommended additional investment to increase capacity at the hospital. In that regard, an additional €0.5m funding was provided to University Hospital Waterford in 2017 to enable the hospital to provide two additional cath lab sessions per week. This entails an additional eight hours provision per week or a 20% expansion in operating hours. The cath lab will now be funded to provide 12 sessions i.e. 48 hours activity per week. It is expected that this capacity will facilitate the provision of an increased volume of scheduled cardiology care at the hospital.

On 23 January last, I asked the HSE to develop a Cardiology Waiting List Initiative, noting that such an initiative could include the deployment of a mobile cath lab for specific periods in specific locations. On 18 May, I requested that the HSE maximise the benefit for patients from the €0.5m funding allocated for University Hospital Waterford, in respect of both additional sessions at the existing cath lab and the temporary use of a mobile cath lab for a specific period. The Deputy may wish to note that on 12 June last, the HSE was approved by my Department to issue a tender, within one week, for the provision of a temporary mobile cath lab at the hospital. The lab will be procured in line with the normal HSE procurement process. The mobile cath lab will be funded from time related savings relating to the additional funding provided to the hospital on foot of the Herity report.

I should also mention that following a targeted initiative, there has been a significant improvement in waiting times for cardiology procedures at the hospital. The most recent data from the NTPF, which is for May 2017, indicates that a total of 296 patients are waiting for a cardiology in-patient/day case procedure, with 189 of those waiting less than 3 months. The HSE has advised that no patient will be waiting longer than 6 months for a cardiology procedure at University Hospital Waterford by the end of August.