Declan Bree
Ceist:224 Mr. Bree asked the Minister for Health when a person (details supplied) in County Sligo will be called for cardiac surgery in the Mater Hospital Dublin. [1416/94]
Written Answers. - Cardiac Surgery Appointment.
As I am sure the Deputy will appreciate, the scheduling of surgery is a matter for the clinical judgment of the consultant concerned. I made inquiries from the Mater Hospital and I have been informed that this person has been placed on the urgent waiting list. However, the hospital is unable at this stage to give a precise admission date for her operation. If the person feels that her condition has deteriorated she should contact her general practitioner who would be in the best position to highlight her case to the consultant.
In 1993, I allocated a sum of £1 million from the waiting list fund to enable the necessary facilities to be put in place at the National Cardiac Unit, Mater Hospital to increase the annual throughput of open heart surgery at the hospital from 750 to 1,000 — an increase of 33 per cent. In addition, in 1993 and 1994, I have provided capital funds which will facilitate the doubling of cardiac surgery at Cork Regional Hospital from 200 to 400 patients each year.
I have allocated in excess of £2 million in 1994 to the Mater Hospital for cardiac surgery and related developments. The development, which was completed recently, includes additional cardiac maintenance beds, intensive care facilities and high dependency facilities which are required to support the cardiac surgery programme. These new facilities at the hospital have now become operational and the additional cardiac surgery activity has commenced.
The developments at the Mater Hospital, with the developments in progress for cardiac surgery at Cork Regional Hospital, will have the effect of increasing the number of cardiac surgery operations performed on an annual basis in the public hospital sector by 47 per cent from 950 to 1,400.