A PRE-ELECTION promise to reduce the number of children waiting too long for spinal surgeries to less than 20 has failed, Health Minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill has admitted.
However, these excuses have been branded “not credible” amid calls for the new Minister to meet with parents whose children are waiting for surgeries.
New figures show that there were 54 children left waiting too long for their surgery as of December 31 – way off the target of 20 that was used by Government parties in the run up to last year’s election.
The issue of children waiting too long – over four months – for operations for conditions such as scoliosis and spina bifida has continued for over a decade.
Last year, former Health Minister Stephen Donnelly put in place a range of measures to tackle the wait list including increases resources to carry out more surgeries in Ireland as well as paying to send some children overseas for their operations.
In the weeks before the election, the Minister brought a memo to Cabinet that claimed the number of children waiting more than four months for surgery would fall to 20 by the end of the year.
This projection was repeatedly used by several Government TDs and Ministers during the election campaign including by then-taoiseach Simon Harris.
In November, the head of the spinal unit at Children’s Health Ireland Dr David Moore told the Irish Sun that his team had been “pressurised to give them projections” as he said: “If we don’t meet them it won’t be for the want of trying.”
Despite the number of surgeries carried out by CHI increasing by 10 per cent last year, the health service did not hit the target of 20 put out by politicians in the run up to the election.
The number of kids waiting over four months for their surgery fell from 86 at the start of 2024 to 54 as of December 31st – significantly above the target of 20.
The figure was provided by new Health Minister Jennifer Carroll McNeill to Sinn Fein’s David Cullinane in response to a parliamentary question.
In her response, the new Health Minister claimed there were several reasons why CHI failed to hit the target promised by politicians.
Our Kids Can’t Wait Campaign
WAITING lists in Ireland have long been a national disgrace.
More than 106,000 children are on hospital waiting lists for all treatments. However, a new source of shame has emerged as 327 children wait for life changing spinal surgeries.
Their conditions are getting worse while they languish on waiting lists.
Such are the delays, many child patients will be outside the therapeutic window when their treatments are approved.
Earlier this month, the Seanad heard how at least one child has become permanently paralysed since the issue was raised publicly before Christmas.
Their plight has been spearheaded by campaigning Senator Tom Clonan, who himself has a child with a disability.
Former Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has even admitted that the health service is failing these kids.
Children are being allowed to deteriorate due to mismanagement, which has allowed the waiting lists to grow.
The Irish Sun’s Kids Can’t Wait campaign aims to shine a light on how the State is failing sick children and give their families a voice.
It will also force the Government to do something to clear the backlog of operations and give these children a chance of living a normal life.
Minister Carroll MacNeill said doctors ran extra outpatient clinics to work through a backlog of kids who needed appointments which resulted in increased referrals to surgery.
However, these excuses have been blasted as “not credible” by Sinn Fein’s health spokesman David Cullinane who has urged the new Minister to meet with parents whose children are waiting for operations.
He told the Irish Sun: “The reasons given for not reaching the target are not credible. When making the commitment to reduce the number of children waiting to 20 it was the responsibility of the Government and CHI to anticipate new referrals and a shift in the level of acuity in children attending CHI.
“This is a Government that cannot plan and continues to make promises to these children that they break over and over.
“The new Minister needs to meet with and work with the families of these children and adequately resource complex spinal surgeries and health care for children.”
The latest figures from CHI show from the end of January show that there are 230 children in Ireland waiting for spinal surgeries – 112 of whom have yet to receive a date for their surgery.
