Cancer care delays criticised

FURTHER delays in the delivery of vital radiotherapy services to Cork, Galway and Waterford under the Cancer Control Plan were criticised by the Irish Cancer Society.

ICS chief executive John McCormack said the plan for a national network of radiotherapy services was unveiled in July 2005 when the Government announced an investment of 23 additional linear accelerators to bring the total to 36 by 2011.

Mr McCormack said it was understood at the time that two of the accelerators were to be in an integrated satellite centre at Waterford Regional Hospital.

In February last year it was revealed additional services in Waterford would not be delivered until the end of 2012 at the earliest.

The ICS said it had learned additional radiotherapy services would not be available in Waterford, Cork and Galway until 2014.

“Yet again, timelines for the delivery of vital life saving services are being pushed out and it is entirely unacceptable” said Mr McCormack, who urged the Government to scale back on the “new” timelines to accelerate delivery.

According to the Health Service Executive, additional radiotherapy services will be in operation in Cork, Galway and Waterford by 2014. The agency insisted the plan was on schedule.

Last week, however, Irish cancer services chief, Prof Thomas Keane confirmed the planned public radiotherapy unit at Waterford regional Hospital would not be in operation until 2014 at the earliest.

Spokeswoman for the Cancer Care Alliance, Jane Bailey, said Waterford Regional Hospital still did not even have the basic infrastructure a centre of excellence in cancer care should have.

The HSE’s local health manager in Waterford, Dermot Halpin, pointed out that a necessary part of infrastructural development in Waterford Regional Hospital was the design and completion of the Cancer Services Unit and these plans were due to be signed off shortly.

Mr Halpin said the unit would have in-patient, outpatient, day care and auxiliary supports to support a population of 500,000. He said it was intended to have public radiation in therapy in Waterford Regional Hospital in place by 2014.

In the meantime, a full radiation service was available to public patients from the region at the Whitfield Clinic in Waterford.