Anger as child dies after heart op cancelled

ANGRY health campaigners called for the Government to act last night after a two-year-old girl died because doctors were forced to cancel her heart surgery

The two-year-old girl, from Limerick, died early yesterday morning, not long after being sent home by consultants at Our Lady's Hospital for Sick Children in Crumlin, Dublin.

She had been scheduled for cardiac surgery on Monday, but as there were no post-operative intensive care paediatric nurses available the elective surgery was rescheduled.

"It is unfortunate that it has taken the death of a child to bring this appalling situation to the public's attention," said Dympna Donnelly, chairperson of Heart Children Ireland, the lobby group which represents 600 families throughout the country.

At present, there are an estimated 100 children seeking heart surgery and there is an alarming 14-month outpatients' waiting list of children with heart problems which have yet to be categorised by specialists.

Our Lady's Hospital is the only facility of its kind in the country, but is forced to run on what Ms Donnelly called an "unrealistic budget".

The hospital continues to be hampered by budgetary constraints while demand for its specialist medical care is on the increase, Ms Donnelly said.

Of the hospital's 21-bed intensive care unit, only 13 beds can remain open because of the nursing shortage.

Last night, Minister for Health and Children Mícheál Martin ordered an immediate report into the death of the child from the Eastern Regional Health Authority. He said he expected the report to be on his desk in the next two days.

"The minister is well aware of the situation in Crumlin, the time for inquiries is past, the time for action is upon us now," said Shay McConnell of Heart Children Ireland.

"It now looks like a return to the bad old days when children had to be sent abroad for life-saving heart operations," Mr McConnell added.

A spokesman for the medical staff at Our Lady's Hospital said the shortage of specialised nursing staff was a global one and the hospital had requested Department of Health and Children approval to recruit overseas.

"But how hard can you expect a hospital to carry out this type of recruitment when the budget is so constrained?" Ms Donnelly said.

"This tragedy should bring home to all that healthcare is about more than figures on a balance sheet and that suffering and premature death can be the consequence of poor planning and mismanagement in our health system," Deputy Liz McManus, the Labour Party's deputy leader and spokesperson on health said.

Fine Gael health spokesperson Olivia Mitchell said: "Any shortage of specialist care nurses did not arise overnight. It has been well-signalled and it is a nonsense to suggest it has nothing to do with funding".

Just last month, Professor Owen Smith, a consultant haematologist at Our Lady's, described the hospital as being "of east European standard or less".

The whole hospital was incredibly rundown, he said.

And, while some €30 million is currently being invested in new theatres, the Crumlin Hospital Action Group says the total investment needed is 350m.

The hospital overspent by €2.4m last year, and requires savings of more than €900,000 a month to meet its budget.

Because of this, one ward has been closed, thereby reducing its bed capacity by 10%. If the 25-bed unit remains closed until the end of the year, it will mean 2,000 fewer procedures taking place.

The 2003 budget allocation from the Eastern Regional Health Authority was €78.4m, an increase of €800,000 on last year. When the overrun of €2.4m was subtracted, the hospital was left with €76m at least 10% down on what the lobby groups say is realistically needed.