Brendan Griffin
Ceist:179. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Health his views on matters (details supplied); his plans to address the issues raised; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26454/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraThursday, 1 June 2017
Ceisteanna (179)
Freagraí scríofa
The project to develop the new children's hospital is an extraordinary opportunity to enhance paediatric services in Ireland, and the Government decision in 2012 to locate the hospital on the campus of St James's Hospital was made in the best interests of children from a clinical perspective. The hospital will be a world class facility to care for children and young people from all over Ireland who are in need of specialist and complex care and, with two outpatient and urgent care centres, will also be the local children's hospital for children and young people in the Greater Dublin area. These two outpatient and urgent care centres, being developed on the campuses of Tallaght and Connolly Hospitals, are an integral part of the children's hospital, and will be supported by the hospital in providing urgent care and outpatient services, including general paediatric rapid access outpatient clinics, orthopaedic outpatient fracture clinics and other chronic disease clinics. The centres will improve geographic access to urgent care for children in the Greater Dublin Area as well as further afield.
In relation to access to the children's hospital at the St James's campus, while noting that the campus is better served by public transport than any other hospital in the country, the plans and design for the hospital recognise the need of most families to access the hospital by car. A traffic management and traffic mobility plan for the hospital, endorsed by the National Transport Authority and Dublin City Council, formed part of the planning application. A 10-day oral hearing took place in December 2015 in which traffic evidence was presented in detail and allowed for cross questioning by those who had concerns. Planning approval for the hospital was granted without change to the proposed traffic and mobility plan. The plans for the hospital provide for 1,000 car parking spaces, of which 675 will be dedicated for use by families, three times the number of spaces currently available at the three Dublin children's hospitals combined. Parents will be able to reserve their space ahead of arriving at the hospital, and emergency drop-off spaces are also being provided.
Incorporating leading practice in children's hospital design, children and young people who need to stay in hospital will have their own single room. Every room, with the exception of critical care rooms, will have an en-suite bathroom and facilities for a parent to comfortably stay overnight. The development of a new 53-bed family accommodation, to be built adjacent to the new children’s hospital, was also included in the new children’s hospital planning permission.
A national model of care for paediatric healthcare services in Ireland has been developed by the HSE. The model aims to ensure that all children should be able to access high quality services in an appropriate location, within an appropriate timeframe, irrespective of their geographical location or social background. The new children’s hospital will engage in shared care arrangements and outreach to support regional paediatric units in Cork, Limerick and Galway, and in turn local hospitals, thereby providing clinically appropriate healthcare for children as close to home as possible. With the new children’s hospital as the future hub, the initial focus in the implementation of the model of care will be on developing the regional units to provide an appropriate range of regional services to minimise the need for children and families to travel to Dublin for services.