Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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108. To ask the Minister for Health if he will deliver a joint diabetes centre of excellence at Letterkenny University Hospital and Sligo University Hospital as called for by diabetes campaigners in the region. [50616/21]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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Both Letterkenny and Sligo University Hospitals provide diabetes services for both adult and paediatric patients.

Letterkenny University Hospital has one full time Consultant Endocrinologist and one Consultant Physician with a special interest in Diabetes, supported by Clinical Nurse Specialists for adults and paediatrics.  There is one Registered Advanced Nurse Practitioner in the Paediatric service. There are approximately 1,500 Type I and 6,000 Type II adult patients with diabetes availing of this service. Patients requiring pump initiations travel to Sligo, Galway or Dublin.

Sligo University Hospital has two Consultant Endocrinologists supported by Clinical Nurse Specialists, Advance Nurse Practitioner and Health and Social Care Professionals. The hospital delivers Endocrinology services to the adult population in Sligo, Leitrim, South Donegal and West Cavan. There are 600 adult patients with Type I diabetes in this service. Additionally, it is planned to commence up to 3 patients on insulin pump therapy in Quarter 4 2021, with 70 patients awaiting pump start.

The North West Paediatric Insulin Pump Service is managed across Sligo and Letterkenny Hospitals, with governance provided from Sligo by a Consultant Paediatrician with responsibility for Paediatric Pump Service across the North West.   All new Paediatric patient pump starts for North West commence in Sligo University Hospital, where the diabetes team of staff support this service, with follow on care continuing in Letterkenny University Hospital for these patients.

A new Diabetes Day Unit opened in April 2021 in Sligo University Hospital to support both the paediatric pump service and adult diabetes services.