Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 9 September 2020
271. Deputy Francis Noel Duffy asked the Minister for Health the rationale behind the decision to relocate acute services for children in the national children’s hospital to other hospitals; if this is a permanent or temporary decision; the impact this might have on the local community; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22850/20]
View answerLast March as part of the response to the COVID-19 pandemic, CHI temporarily relocated paediatric services from Tallaght to its other sites at Crumlin and Temple Street and to the urgent care centre at Connolly. This freed up resources at Tallaght to support the adult service there in responding to the demands of COVID. This temporary change allowed for some CHI staff on a voluntary basis to work in the adult services supporting their colleagues including in ICU during this very challenging period for the health services.
This was a temporary measure, and paediatric services at Tallaght have now resumed. CHI advises this began with the return of outpatients in July. A 24/7 emergency care unit, medical inpatient care and day case surgery, medicine and x-ray resumed on site from 3 September.
Tallaght will now take on increased day surgeries instead of resuming in-patient surgeries, which will create theatre capacity in Temple St and Crumlin for surgeries that can only be undertaken in those hospitals. Additionally, critically ill and critically injured children will be directed to the CHI Emergency Departments at Crumlin and Temple Street.
Patient safety is central to CHI’s decision making, both in the provision and development of services. This approach is designed to ensure that resources across all CHI sites at Tallaght, Crumlin, Temple Street and Connolly are utilised as effectively as possible to maximise the level of service provided and ensure the delivery of safe, high quality services. This is crucial in the context of what is expected to be a challenging winter for paediatric services.
