Probe needed into €19m 'misspent' scoliosis funds

Senator Tom Clonan, a co-sponsor of the Health (Scoliosis Treatment Services) Bill 2024, said: 'I’m a senator but I’m also a parent and a carer to a young man who had that spinal surgery for scoliosis back in 2017.' File photo: Norma Burke /PA

An urgent investigation is needed into how €19m was “misspent” and diverted away from spinal surgery care at Children’s Health Ireland, Senator Tom Clonan has said.

He described as "scandalous" the revelations that a dedicated fund given to CHI in 2022 for children’s orthopaedic surgery on spina bifida and scoliosis was instead spent “far more broadly”.

Health Minister Stephen Donnelly had disclosed the information in the Seanad in advance of a HSE audit report. 

“It emerged in the debate this was misspent, what does that mean?” Mr Clonan said: “I think the board of CHI, the operations officer need to be brought in in the same way that Ryan Tubridy or Noel Kelly were brought in to account for themselves.

“It is shocking that this is the way we treat disabled children,”  Mr Clonan said.

He warned doctors have told him Ireland is “a complete outlier” in Europe as children in other countries are not allowed to deteriorate like this.

Mr Clonan is co-sponsor of the Health (Scoliosis Treatment Services) Bill 2024.

“I’m a senator but I’m also a parent and a carer to a young man who had that spinal surgery for scoliosis back in 2017,” he said.

“Like the children on these waiting lists, and through no fault of the surgeons or the clinical staff, but because of the mismanagement of Children’s Health Ireland, he got his surgery quite late.” 

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This caused serious health problems for his son, he added.

“The curve was so pronounced that his breathing was compromised, his lung function was compromised, his heart was in a part of his chest cavity where you wouldn’t expect to find a human heart because the pressure was so intense it had pushed (it over),” he said.

Michelle Long and Claire Cahill at the Scoliosis Advocacy Network share his concerns.

“The minister's failure to hold CHI accountable has caused significant harm to our children, preventing many from reaching their full potential,” they said.

Children have had to endure two surgeries instead of one, live with restrictive lung disease, lose function, and some are now deemed inoperable due to delays.

CHI have said they cannot comment on the funding until the audit is complete but the parents were not satisfied with this. They said this indicates "problematic dynamics and culture" between CHI and the department. 

These mothers, along with the Spina Bifida and Hydrocephalus Paediatric Advocacy Group (SPHPAG) met then-Taoiseach Leo Varadkar last September to discuss the crisis.

“Nine months later, the situation has worsened,” they warned.

Members of the Scoliosis parent groups (left to right) Amanda Coughlan-Santry, co-founder and co-lead of Spina Bifida and Hydrocephalus Paediatric Advocacy Group; Una Keightley, co-founder and co-lead of Spina Bifida and Hydrocephalus Paediatric Advocacy Group; Claire Cahill, Co-founder of Scoliosis Advocacy Network and Michelle Long, founder of Scoliosis Advocacy Network. File photo: Gareth Chaney/ Collins Photos

Mr Donnelly came under fire also from families and from Sinn Féin for only ordering the audit in February of this year.

Una Keightley, co-lead with SPHPAG, shared emails with the I rish Examiner earlier this week showing they raised fears directly with the ministers’ office frequently since 2022.

“People have to be held to account for this,” she also said. “When you’re applying for Carer’s Alliance from the Government you have to be able to say where and when you spent every single penny.

“And it’s just not good enough, it’s very unfair. CHI deliberately funnelled money for disabled children to other areas of the hospital, how did they think that was OK?”