Written Answers. - Hospital Waiting Lists.
Bernard J. Durkan
Ceist:
643
Mr. Durkan
asked the
Minister for Health and Children
the number of persons on waiting lists in respect of heart surgery; the extent to which the waiting lists for heart surgery have been reduced; the number of extra operations that have taken place in each of the past three years in the context of determining the precise impact of the waiting list initiatives on the actual waiting lists; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
[24869/00]
As you are aware, adult cardiac bypass surgery in the public health sector is currently carried out at three centres, the Mater Misericordiae Hospital, Dublin, Cork University Hospital and since September 1998, St. James's Hospital, Dublin. Paediatric cardiac surgery is carried out at Our Lady's Hospital for Sick Children, Crumlin.
Public patient waiting list statistics are collected by hospitals and furnished to my Department on a quarterly basis. I can confirm that at the end of June 2000, the most recent period for which information is available, there was a total of 587 adults awaiting cardiac surgery over 12 months and 205 waiting for three to 12 months. This represents a reduction of 229 when compared with the figures as at end of December, 1999 of 816 adults awaiting cardiac surgery over 12 months and a reduction of 93 when compared with the end of December 1999 figure of 298 awaiting cardiac surgery for three to 12 months. There was a total of 66 children awaiting cardiac surgery over six months, and ten waiting for three to six months as at 30 June 2000. The total number of cardiac surgery operations carried out on adults and children in the years 1997, 1998, 1999 is 1,531, 1,696 and 1,703 respectively. This includes cardiac surgery procedures purchased under the cardiac surgery waiting list initiatives.
In 1998, my predecessor allocated funding of £2.3 million under the cardiac surgery waiting list initiative, with the specific aim of reducing the national cardiac surgery waiting list for adults and children. In 1999, my predecessor made provision for the allocation of £4 million under the cardiac surgery waiting list initiative and I am making a further £4 million available in 2000. I am confident that this year's funding will build on previous years' success in reducing the total number of adults and children on the waiting list. The cardiac surgery waiting list initiative has had and will continue to have a positive impact on the public cardiac waiting list. The total number of public patients, adults and children, awaiting cardiac surgery has reduced from 1586 in September 1997 to 868 in June 2000, which represents a reduction of 55%.
As Minister for Health and Children, my priority is to address the existing cardiac surgery waiting lists and the ultimate objective is to achieve an average six month waiting period for those on the lists. I am confident that the development of additional adult public cardiac surgery facilities at St. James's Hospital, Dublin, and the proposed new cardiac surgery developments at University College Hospital, Galway, will help reduce the waiting lists which exist at present. Target activity levels are in the region of 450 procedures annually at St. James's Hospital and 300 procedures at UCHG. This additional activity will increase existing adult public cardiac surgery capacity by over 50%. I am also developing additional children's cardiac surgery capacity at Our Lady's Hospital for Sick Children, Crumlin, in association with the national cardiac unit, Mater Hospital, to provide for up to an additional 100 cardiac procedures for children. This additional activity will increase existing paediatric cardiac surgery capacity by up to 40%.
