Children will die: warning after 20 heart ops cancelled
It was also revealed yesterday that only one additional intensive care bed has become available at Our Lady’s Hospital for Sick Children in Crumlin since the tragic death of two-year-old Róisín Ruddle in July 1, 2003.
On Monday, two children were sent home from Our Lady’s after their heart operations were cancelled. One of the children was sent to theatre and was fully prepared for surgery.
A consultant at the hospital confirmed there have been 20 cancellations so far this year. He said the hospital was not able to address the staffing situation because it was constrained by what it could pay specialist nurses. There are currently 20 vacancies for Intensive Care Unit nurses at the hospital.
“The way hospitals are organised and funded is ludicrous. If hospitals could afford to pay nurses €5,000 more, plus a €2,000 Dublin weighting allowance they could get the staff they desperately need right now,” he said. He warned the situation was not confined to the children’s hospital. The Mater Hospital’s cardiac unit was forced to cancel surgery every second day because of a lack of specialist nurses.
A support group for parents of children with congenital heart defects said nothing had changed since Róisín Ruddle’s death.
Heart Children Ireland administrator, Margaret Rogers warned unless the situation was addressed immediately it was only a matter of time before there was another tragedy.
She said neither the Department of Health nor the Department of Finance had shown any real urgency in dealing with the situation. “Where’s the urgency? This problem has been going on for years and nothing has changed,” she said.
An independent report into Róisín Ruddle’s death has yet to be published.
Olivia Mitchell of Fine Gael said it was not good enough that no action had been taken since Róisín’s death.
Labour’s Liz McManus said: “Failure to respond to the chronic situation at Our Lady’s Hospital for Sick Children in the wake of last year’s tragedy has put children at risk.”
Health Minister Mary Harney said steps must be taken to make sure another tragedy does not happen again. “This is a sad and serious situation,” she told the Dáil. “It has arisen before, we want to ensure that it doesn’t arise again and that is why it is important that we get the nurses that we require.”
