Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 27 July 2021
1487. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health the advice he received and the recommendations made regarding the location of the major trauma centre in Dublin; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33540/21]
View answer1489. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health if he will publish in full the report of the independent assessment panel and the scoring of the hospitals which bid for the major trauma centres; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33542/21]
View answer1490. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health if he will publish in full the recommendations of the HSE board regarding the location of major trauma centres; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33543/21]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 1487, 1489 and 1490 together.
The process to designate the Major Trauma Centre for the Central Trauma Network commenced with the HSE establishing a Trauma Review Implementation Group (TRIG), comprising senior clinical and managerial representation. The TRIG then prepared a designation framework of detailed and specific guidance against which hospitals could be assessed. This framework was subject to an eight-week formal public consultation.
The HSE then appointed an Independent Assessment Panel, comprised of national and international experts, to provide advice on the preferred location of the Major Trauma Centre for the Central Trauma Network using the agreed designation framework.
The Panel advised the HSE that the Mater Hospital be designated as the Major Trauma Centre for the Central Trauma Network, and the HSE Board affirmed this recommendation, following which it was approved by Government in April 2021.
Any further detail in respect of this process should be provided the HSE in the first instance. Members of the Oireachtas are advised that the HSE is currently unable to access the information to answer Parliamentary Questions due to the recent cyber-attack, which has required a temporary shut-down of HSE IT systems. The disruption to service is on-going and the HSE is working hard to restore its IT capacity and resume normal services. Members of the Oireachtas will be advised as soon as the HSE is again in a position to provide responses to PQs and are encouraged to resubmit their Parliamentary Questions at that point.
