23/06/2009

TDs Pay Visit To Children's Hospital

A delegation of TDs and senators will be visiting Our Lady's Children's Hospital Crumlin in Dublin today to inspect conditions there.

Yesterday the hospital reversed plans to close beds and an operating theatre over the summer months.

However, the hospital plans to restrict outpatient appointments except for emergencies for a total of three weeks between now and the New Year because of a €9 million shortfall in its budget.

The Health Service Chief Executive Brendan Drumm is due to attend the Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children in the coming weeks to discuss the situation at the hospital.

The committee has organised this visit ahead of that meeting.

Management at the hospital have admitted the closures already in place will mean longer waiting times for children.

Fine Gael is to put forward a private members' motion in the Dáil tonight calling on the Government to reverse the cutbacks at Crumlin Children’s Hospital.

The party's health spokesman Dr James Reilly said the cuts will lead to a reduction of 8,483 attendances and 1,100 admissions at the hospital in 2009.

The cross-party group will meet the board of management to see first-hand the impact of ward closures and reductions at the site.

(DW/BMcC)

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