Written answers

Thursday, 10 October 2019

Department of Health

Paediatric Services

Photo of Bernard DurkanBernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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195. To ask the Minister for Health the extent to which scoliosis patients can expect to receive treatment in the next 12 months; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41520/19]

Photo of Simon HarrisSimon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Children’s Health Ireland (CHI) is working to develop sustainable solutions to reduce waiting times for children attending its orthopaedic and scoliosis services. The additional investment from the HSE in recent years and the impact of investment and the implementation of the Scoliosis 10 Point Action Plan for 2018/2019 is starting to deliver results. Across Children’s Health Ireland (CHI) a total of 418 surgical procedures were performed in 2018, compared with 371 in 2017 and 224 in 2016.

In terms of driving sustainable improvements to accessing services, CHI advises that new processes have been implemented whereby all patients on the orthopaedic waiting list are clinically triaged by an Orthopaedic Consultant as to their clinical acuity, and any surgeries if required are carried out in order of clinical priority and waiting time.

Since May 2018 CHI Crumlin have had an initiative in place to address long waiters on the OPD waiting lists. This has seen a reduction in the average waiting time for an OPD appointment from 248 patients waiting over 21 months in July 2018 to 45 patients waiting over 21 months in July 2019.

In terms of activity to reduce waiting times to access services, CHI at Crumlin will be running additional spinal clinics to ensure that by year end no child is waiting longer than 12 months.

In addition CHI at Temple Street forecast that no child will be waiting over 12 months for a spinal OPD appointment by year end, and are working to ensure that there are ongoing developments to maintain this target into 2020.

CHI advises that the appointment of two orthopaedic consultant surgeon posts is currently in progress and will have a positive impact on waiting times for patients for an OPD appointments for general orthopaedics, including scoliosis. These consultants will form part of Children’s Health Ireland’s consultant team and will join a cross-city team of paediatric consultants who will deliver services at Crumlin and Temple Street as well as evolving the role of the Paediatric Outpatients and Urgent Care Centre at Connolly which is part of the overall vision for a cross city Orthopaedic Service in CHI.

In addition, two Consultant Anaesthesiologists (2WTE) have been appointed in CHI at Crumlin which has increased theatre capacity for orthopaedics.

CHI is also working to recruit a consultant Neurophysiologist, which will allow CHI at Crumlin to develop a dedicated in-house spinal monitoring service

The 2018 investment in paediatric orthopaedics included funding to support the transition of adolescents with scoliosis from CHI at Crumlin and Temple Street to the Mater Misericordiae University Hospital (MMUH). There are now agreed clinical pathways in place for the transition of adolescents (aged 16 years and over) waiting for a first time OPD/spinal review appointment.

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