asked the Minister for Health if he is aware of the urgent need to provide comprehensive surgical facilities in County Cavan; and when such services will be provided.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - County Cavan Surgical Facilities.
16.
I am aware of the need to provide improved surgical facilities in Cavan Hospital.
The general hospital development plan provides for the development of a general hospital at Cavan and agreement has been reached with the North-Eastern Health Board that this should be the priority project for the area.
A project team has been established and is at present engaged in the preparation of a planning brief. This means that the planning of the hospital, including the surgical department, is proceeding as quickly as possible, and this accords fully with my wishes.
The date of building the new hospital will be determined when planning is completed but the date will, of course, be dependent on economic circumstances.
Would the Minister agree that the terms of his answer are the same as those he gave to me six months ago? Would he now state when he thinks building will start on the new general hospital in Cavan?
I have not deceived the Deputy in any way in relation to his previous question. It is necessary to go through certain processes before one can have a plan. A project team has been established and it held its first meeting on 28th July, 1976. The project team consists of representatives from the health board, including consultants, nurses and administrative staff, and is under the chairmanship of the chief executive officer. It is expected that the planning brief will be completed in March or April next year. I am informed that the project team meets every fortnight as distinct from other hospitals engaged in a similar process. The health board and I are pleased that such progress has been made. The planning brief will not be ready until March or April of next year when it will be handed over to consultants, who will take some time to finalise the matter. Agreement has been reached in regard to the number of beds and so on. Reasonably good progress has been made. The Deputy will understand that it takes quite an amount of work before the final stage is reached. The process in regard to a large hospital in Cork took three-and-a-half years. Perhaps that was unusual and there may be quicker ways of completing the planning, but the health board and my officials are satisfied.
The North-Eastern Health Board regard it as their priority. Since it has been accepted by the Minister for Health, and the objectives of the committee are known, does he not think that the whole process could be expedited and that the report could be sent to the consultants before the end of this year?
I would not be able to dictate the speed at which the project team work. They meet more often than other health boards who have been given permission to plan.
It is a priority.
Cavan is a priority within the health board concerned. I do not think the Deputy would envisage that we would engage in building all the hospitals at the same time because such capital money would not be available. As far as Cavan is concerned, I visited the hospital twice and the surgical unit is in a pretty bad way. The previous administration will have to take some responsibility for this problem. There was a delay in providing proper surgical facilities in Cavan Hospital when one remembers that it was condemned in 1934. That is a reflection on all of us. Only in 1954 was money spent on Cavan and I think the amount spent was £1,100. When I came into this Department we had the Fitzgerald Plan which apparently did not satisfy anyone. After consultation with the health boards and agencies, I introduced a plan which does not satisfy anybody.
Will there be provision in the 1977 budget for the building of the hospital? Could I have an assurance on that because people are very worried about it?
I could not give the Deputy an assurance because the consultants' work——
So we are lost.
The consultants' work will take quite some time, possibly two years.
It would be very easy to make a fair guess.
What is the point in providing moneys for a project which everybody knows involves lay and technical people and which could not be commenced in 1977?
I am not accepting that.
Question No. 17.
This point was mentioned while I was unavoidably out of the House for a moment. Could the Minister give us an assurance in regard to the planning of this hospital and its ultimate construction that only Irish professional people will be employed? The Minister knows that I raised the same point with him in regard to St. James's Hospital.
I take the Deputy's point.
But I did not get an assurance. Am I to get an assurance?
As far as I know the North Eastern Health Board will have the obligation to select the various consultants. I presume they will do the right thing.
But the overall responsibility will be that of the Minister.
Yes, that is true. The overall responsibility rests with me.