Billy Kelleher (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)
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214. To ask the Minister for Health his plans to introduce paediatric interventional radiology prior to the establishment of the national children's hospital; if so, the location of same; if funding will be made available for same; the measures being taken to hire the required staff; the timeframe involved in commencing this service; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45162/17]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Arrangements are currently in place to provide for a small number of paediatric radiology interventions to be carried out by an adult radiologist and some of the paediatric radiologists on a case-by-case basis. However, the HSE acknowledges there is a need to further develop these services in Ireland. The development of the new children’s hospital and the two OPD and Urgent Care Centres at Tallaght and Connolly provides an opportunity to progress operational integration of the three existing children’s hospital radiology services and to plan for the appropriate provision of these services well in advance of the move to the new facilities. The integration programme involves a gap analysis of current and planned service provision, and the required development in paediatric interventional radiology will be addressed through this programme over the next few years.

I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly with additional information concerning the integration programme and plans for future development of paediatric interventional radiology services.