Top role in cardiology at Mater Hospital ‘had no applicants’

Nobody has applied for the job of consultant cardiologist at the Mater Hospital in Dublin, despite the fact that the service dealing with adult congenital heart defects at the hospital has been stretched to breaking point.

Taoiseach Enda Kenny said that money is available to hire an additional consultant to deal with the rising number of patients attending the Mater with adult congenital heart defects but that nobody has applied.

Cardiologists at the Mater have warned that more resources are urgently needed. The two consultants working in the service say they are dealing with around 4,000 patients, without adequate resources, staffing levels or laboratories.

Around 400 patients every year are transferred from paediatric services to the adult service dealing with congenital heart defects.

Speaking during Leaders’ Questions in the Dáil yesterday, the Taoiseach said a post, to be split between the Mater and Crumlin Children’s Hospital, has been advertised worldwide but no applications have been received.

Mr Kenny said the post would be re-advertised shortly and he appealed for anyone interested to contact the Mater Hospital.

Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams said 350 people are dying each year because of overcrowding and he accused the Taoiseach of failing to provide the necessary resources because of his vision for a private rather than public healthcare system.

Mr Kenny rejected this claim and said that the money was there to fill the post.

According to consultant cardiologist Professor Kevin Walsh, lives are being put at risk due to a lack of resources.

Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, Prof Walsh said NHS recommendations state that there should be four full-time consultants and five full-time nurses at the Mater Hospital.

However, he said there are just two part-time consultants and two nurses filling those essential roles.

In addition there is a shortage of administration staff while access to the catheter laboratory is very limited, he added.

There was a pressing and urgent need to sort the situation out, he said adding: “There’s people who aren’t getting any care at all They’re only coming when they’re ill.”

He said: “We are waiting for a new consultant since 2007 and again last year when it was meant to be advertised and a person appointed, they put it back and moved the job around.”

While the paediatric service is considered world class, the consultants running the adult service say they are dealing with an unsustainable burden caused by poor resources.

The consultants say they are only able to provide three patient sessions each week to run a clinic and carry out procedures, while services in the UK dealing with an equivalent number of patients would provide 50-55 sessions a week.