Children with serious heart problems are waiting an average of two years before cardiac surgery at Our Lady's Hospital for Sick Children in Dublin.
The waiting-list crisis at the hospital is so serious that the State will this year spend more than £500,000 sending sick children to the UK for heart surgery.
The latest figures from the Department of Health show that there are currently 96 children on the hospital's heart operation waiting list.
The Minister for Health, Mr Martin, told the Fine Gael TD Ms Deirdre Clune, in a reply to a parliamentary question, that the number of children referred to British hospitals rose from 18 in 1997 to 69 last year. The average cost of sending a child to the UK for surgery last year was £16,400.
"My Department has allocated additional funding of £700,000 to Our Lady's Hospital for Sick Children to continue this initiative in 2000", he said.
Mr Martin said that on January 31st last there were 96 public patients waiting for cardiac procedures at the hospital. "Of these 96, 14 are waiting 0-3 months, 19 are waiting 3-6 months and 63 are waiting over six months. The average waiting time for routine paediatric cardiac surgery is two years."
Part of the problem stemmed from a shortage of theatres and of specialist staff to deal with cardiac surgery at the hospital.
Mr Martin told Ms Clune that a new theatre complex in the hospital would be completed in 2002. This would allow for an additional 100 cardiac procedures a year, an increase of 40 per cent on the existing capacity. Approval had been given for a third cardiac surgeon, who was expected to take up a post at the hospital in July.
"Paediatric cardiology/cardiac surgery services are under constant review by my Department and Our Lady's Hospital for Sick Children," he said. "The new theatre development at the hospital will be a significant factor in enhancing these services."
The new development will provide five operating theatres complete with ancillary accommodation and a day surgery area. Existing facilities are to be upgraded to provide a further two theatre suites. There are currently four cardiologists and two cardiac surgeons working in the hospital.
Mr Martin said that priority for those on waiting lists was a matter for the hospital, but he emphasised that immediate medical treatment was provided in urgent cases.
He said that the decision to send children to the UK for surgery had been taken in 1997 pending the addition of additional cardiac facilities at Our Lady's Hospital.