Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 10 October 2019
10. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Health when a new endocrinologist for the paediatric diabetes service in Cork University Hospital will be appointed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40957/19]
View answerI ask the Minister for Health to indicate when the new endocrinologist for the paediatric diabetes service in Cork University Hospital will be appointed and if he will make a statement on the matter.
I thank the Deputy for the question he asked on behalf of Deputy Jonathan O'Brien. As the Deputies will be aware, Cork University Hospital is the centre for the treatment of paediatric diabetes for the south-west region. It treats approximately 400 children with diabetes, with an average of between 45 and 52 new children being diagnosed each year. I assure the Deputy that the Government is committed to further developing and strengthening paediatric diabetic services. The HSE has advised me that an additional permanent consultant paediatric endocrinologist is due to commence duties in Cork University Hospital in January 2020, which will greatly enhance the paediatric diabetic service. We provided funding in the HSE national service plan for 2019 for recruitment to fill that post and I am pleased that the recruitment competition has been successful. We have approximately 125 additional consultants working in the health service already this year. I am pleased to see that the consultant paediatric endocrinologist post has been filled and that the person concerned will commence work in January 2020. It will make a significant difference to the paediatric diabetic service we can offer children in the south west.
The HSE has further advised me that while Cork University Hospital awaits the appointment of this permanent consultant, a locum consultant paediatrician is in place, alongside a part-time consultant paediatric endocrinologist to support additional clinics to target long waiters and patients who had appointments cancelled in the past. This is a very welcome development not only for people in Cork but also in quite a large catchment area which includes the whole of counties Limerick, Clare, Tipperary, Waterford and Kilkenny.
We provided approval to recruit these additional posts. It was not only approval for the extra consultant who will be in place from January. The national service plan also provided funding for a new psychologist, social worker and dietitian to work as part of that wider paediatric diabetes service in Cork. These posts will also support the delivery of the model of care. I hope this is welcome news and I look forward to people taking up these posts at the start of the new year.
I thank the Minister and welcome the news. It is to be hoped such provision will progress. I welcome that there is an increase in the number of psychologists and dietitians because key findings were made recently and staffing deficits were also identified across other disciplines with a national working time equivalent percentage deficit of 95% in psychologists, 74% deficit in dietitians and a 19% deficit in specialist diabetes nursing. Any improvement in the Cork-Kerry region must be welcomed.
There probably are more than 100 teenagers making the transition to adulthood. Has HSE management done any forward planning to progress their access to services?
I thank the Deputy for his detailed questions in this regard. I do not disagree with him that there is a further body of work we need to do to make sure we increase capacity in all of these teams. I very much welcome the fact that when the Deputy spoke about this issue, he referred to a range of healthcare professionals. Sometimes, in the media and political commentary, people tend to talk about consultants and nurses. While both are important key staff within the health service, the way we are delivering health services now and the way we must do so in the future is very much around a multidisciplinary team where the roles of a dietitian, social worker, psychologist and all the different roles coming together is what will lead to the best possible outcomes and to shifts in the model of care.
On the Deputy's question on children transitioning from childhood to adulthood, I will have the HSE or my Department revert to him on it directly. We have developed a new national clinical programme in paediatrics and neonatology, called the new national model of care for paediatric healthcare services in Ireland. We talk a great deal in this House about the building of the children's hospital in terms of bricks and mortar but this will transform the delivery of healthcare for children and I will send the Deputy a copy of that also.
I welcome the Minister's commitment to addressing provision for teenagers transitioning to adulthood. I look forward to receiving a reply on behalf of Deputy Jonathan O'Brien and Cork University Hospital.
