Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 1 Dec 1998

Vol. 497 No. 5

Written Answers - Hospital Services.

Trevor Sargent

Ceist:

224 Mr. Sargent asked the Minister for Health and Children the position in relation to the availability of a CAT scan service for patients attending the Mater Hospital, Dublin 7; and if one CAT scan machine, available in the hospital, has not been brought into service due to lack of funding. [25705/98]

Minister for Health and Children (Mr. Cowen)

Each year, hospitals are notified of their non-capital allocation and a service plan is drawn up by them and agreed with the Department. This plan sets down parameters for activity for the year and hospitals are required to maintain activity levels within the hospital's agreed parameters. Detailed decisions in relation to hospital spending are a matter for the hospital management. The hospital's chief executive officer recently advised my Department that as part of its service planning and its management of activity within budget it will be taking one of the hospital's CT scanners out of operation until the end of the year.

Deirdre Clune

Ceist:

225 Ms Clune asked the Minister for Health and Children the reason for the differences in waiting periods for results of cervical smear tests in Cork hospitals (details supplied). [25706/98]

Deirdre Clune

Ceist:

226 Ms Clune asked the Minister for Health and Children the reason Cork University Hospital has a waiting list of ten weeks for results of cervical smear tests (details supplied); and the steps, if any, he will take to reduce this waiting period in the short-term. [25707/98]

Minister for Health and Children (Mr. Cowen)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 225 and 226 together.

I am informed by the Southern Health Board that there are a number of reasons for the waiting time of ten weeks for the receipt of the results of smear tests from Cork University Hospital. The laboratory at this hospital has a much higher throughput of smears, for example, it received in excess of 16,000 tests for analysis in 1997 compared with approximately 2,500 tests in the Bon Secours Hospital and approximately 1,000 tests in the Mercy Hospital. In addition, the existence of colposcopy clinics in the Cork University Hospital places additional demands for diagnostic services on the cytology service.

Arising from its concern on this issue the Southern Health Board sought approval for the appointment of a consultant cytopathologist and screening staff to improve the reporting situation in the laboratory at Cork University Hospital. The board anticipates that the consultant post will be advertised in the near future and it will be supported by additional laboratory technical staff. The Southern Health Board is confident that these developments will make a significant difference to the service at the hospital.