Cork-based families among those informed about hip surgery audit

Thirty-two families in Cork are among those who received notification that their child’s past hip surgery was under review, Children’s Health Ireland has confirmed.

Developmental dysplasia of the hip — also known as congenital dislocation of the hip — is a condition where the ball-and-socket joint of the hip does not properly form in babies and young children.

A total of 561 children nationally who had hip surgery for this procedure through Children’s Health Ireland (CHI) are currently being offered new follow-up checks after an audit, which is still under way, recommended it.

It comes as the Dáil heard earlier this month that the audit of these surgeries at CHI hospitals had found that hundreds of children operated on between 2021 and 2023 did not meet the threshold for the procedure.

Taoiseach Micheál Martin told the Dáil that concerns were raised about this under a protected disclosure to Children’s Health Ireland (CHI) — which is primarily funded by the HSE — in September 2023, and that the Department of Health was informed months later, in May 2024.

Sinn Féin has questioned why it took almost a year from then for parents to be formally notified that an audit into the matter is taking place.

The audit is ongoing, and was established after a concern was reported that the threshold criteria being used may have differed across CHI sites.

CHI told Sinn Féin TD for Cork North Central Thomas Gould, in response to a parliamentary question: “CHI can advise that letters were issued to a total of 32 patients with an address in Cork regarding a review into hip dysplasia surgeries.”

Mr Gould said that his thoughts are with the families in Cork who have received these letters in recent weeks.

“They have already experienced the trauma of their child undergoing surgery, and are now left questioning whether this was necessary,” he said.

“That is an unimaginable position for families, and we send our solidarity to them at this extremely difficult time.”

Mr Gould expressed concern that parents have only received notification of this issue in recent weeks.

He called for the scope of the review to be extended, saying: “We have been contacted by parents who now have questions about consultations and operations that took place long before 2021. The scope of the review only covers two years, but this must be expanded to ensure that every possible case of unnecessary surgery is reviewed.”