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Seanad Éireann debate -
Thursday, 13 Feb 2003

Vol. 171 No. 8

Adjournment Matters. - Radiotherapy Services.

I thank the Cathaoirleach for giving me the opportunity to raise this issue again. Coming from the mid-west region, I am sure he fully appreciates the importance of it.

The reply I received last November stated that the expert review group had to report to the Minister. I understand the group will probably not be reporting for at least another month, but at this stage everybody appears to be aware that they will recommend three locations for radiotherapy facilities – Galway, Dublin and Cork.

My concern has changed direction. In this case, the health board is going with what it classifies as a public private partnership with the Mater Private Hospital and the Mid-Western Development Trust will provide all the equipment. What is needed at this stage from the Government is a commitment to provide €500,000 in order to get this operational. Subsequently, expenditure was estimated at €1.5 million. The figures speak for themselves.

The population of the mid-west region is over 350,000. The Caiman-Hine report, a well known report on the radiotherapy area, projected that a population in excess of 300,000 should have its own radiotherapy facility. In this case there would be justification for two linear accelerators.

Most of the people from the Mid-Western Health Board go to St. Luke's Hospital in Dublin. This causes much extra emotional anguish. The journey is quite long, particularly if one must go to Dublin for the weekend, and extremely difficult. The Mid-Western Health Board deserves its own radiotherapy facility. We are very fortunate that the Mater Private Hospital has come on board and there is an organisation in the area which is prepared to put up the capital expenditure.

I anticipate that the Minister of State's response will be somewhat similar to that I received last November. I am putting down a marker that there will be extreme disappointment in the mid-west region if the report recommends the three locations to which I referred and Limerick is bypassed. I appeal to the Minister of State to use his good offices in making clear to the officials that we deserve this basic essential facility for the treatment of cancer patients in the mid-west region.

The Senator has been most vigilant about this matter. I thank him for raising it on the Adjournment and for giving me this opportunity to set out the current position on the provision of radiotherapy services.

As the Deputy will be aware, my colleague the Minister for Health and Children, Deputy Martin, established the expert review group on radiotherapy services to examine the appropriate future development of radiotherapy services. The group comprises a multidisciplinary team of experts in radiation oncology, surgical oncology, nursing, epidemiology and palliative care. It has conducted a national assessment of needs for radiotherapy services, having regard to the demography and epidemiology of cancer and the gaps in current service provision.

The group's report will address the following key issues: access to radiotherapy services in terms of information, financial access and organisational components of access; the need to provide a high quality, evidence based service; the need to take account of current and new developments in health technology; the requirements of the system in terms of human resources; international norms in relation to service provision, planning and staffing; and the organisational development of the services in terms of structures and processes which need to be place in a radiotherapy facility.

I understand that the work of the expert review group on radiotherapy services is at the final editing stage and will be submitted to the Minister for Health and Children shortly. All health boards, including the Mid-Western Health Board, have been afforded the opportunity to meet with and make submissions to the group.

I am aware that the Mid-Western Health Board has submitted a proposal to the Department of Health and Children for the development of radiotherapy services in its region. I have been informed that consideration of this proposal will be informed by the report of the expert group on radiotherapy services. The provision of additional radiotherapy services nationally will be considered in the context of the report of the expert working group.

I ask the Minister of State to impress upon the officials in the Department of Health and Children the importance of this for the mid-west region.

The Seanad adjourned at 2.20 p.m. until 2.30 p.m. on Tuesday, 18 February 2003.

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