Vol. 471 No. 2
46 Mr. O'Malley asked the Minister for Health if he has made a decision on the establishment of a heart/lung transplant programme at the Mater Hospital in Dublin; if so, the commencement date for the programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20463/96]
Limerick East): The Mater Hospital has submitted an outline preliminary proposal for a lung and heart/lung transplantation programme. The cost of the proposal from the Mater Hospital which would include additional cardiac surgery is: capital cost, £2.6 million and revenue cost, £2.4 million per annum. This would involve the employment of an additional 45 staff. In addition, the Mater Hospital has informed my Department that it considers that it would be uneconomic to initiate a lung and heart/lung transplantation programme on its own without incorporating extra open heart surgery.
The establishment of a successful transplant programme for any specialty is an extremely complex and difficult task. It is essential to have appropriately trained staff, suitable infrastructure and a multi-disciplinary approach to ensure successful outcomes. The Department's recent experience with the successful liver transplant programme bears this out.
I am aware of the difficulties being experienced by patients requiring lung or heart/lung transplants. I am considering the issues involved with a view to alleviating the difficulties for these patients, both in the short and long term. In the light of the experience gained in establishing the liver transplant programme, it is unlikely that a phased approach will be adopted, recognising the need to build expertise and to create a programme that is viable in terms of the outcomes for patients.
