TD criticises HSE for its ‘vague’ response on plans for new Cork hospital

A Cork TD has criticised the HSE for its “vague” response to a request for a timeline on the delivery of Cork’s long-delayed elective hospital, saying it lacks the necessary urgency at a time when more than 71,500 people are on waiting lists in the county.

According to figures published by the National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF) and the Health Service Executive (HSE) last week, 71,537 outpatients were waiting for a first-time appointment in Cork.

An elective hospital caters for non-emergency treatment and is usually pre-scheduled, based on the patient’s convenience and hospital resources.

In December 2021, the then-government approved the national elective ambulatory strategy, committing to establish new, standalone elective hospitals in Cork, Dublin, and Galway.

A year later, it was confirmed that the Cork elective hospital would be built at St Stephen’s Hospital in Sarsfield Court.

The proposed Cork centre will have nine theatres, seven endoscopy suites, and nine minor operation rooms and is expected to provide 180,000 extra procedures, treatments, and diagnostic appointments a year.

In July, health minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill said issues such as site selection and roads access for the elective hospital had all been agreed, and the way was now clear now to move ahead with planning applications to Cork city and county councils.

At the time, Colm Burke, Fine Gael TD for Cork North Central, said he was “shocked” that planning was not likely to be submitted until next year.

Now Séamus McGrath, Fianna Fáil TD for Cork South Central, has described as “very disappointing” and “very vague” a response he received to a parliamentary question in which he requested a timeline for works on the hospital and asked whether funding had been secured.

In a reply written by Brian O’Connell, the HSE’s head of strategic health infrastructure and capital delivery, said the integrated design team (IDT) was working with the HSE to “progress the design”, but this would take time.

No timeline was given, and Mr McGrath’s question on funding was not addressed.

“In the shorter term, the HSE is developing new surgical hubs in each health region across the country,” Mr O’Connell stated.

“The HSE surgical hub based at CUH Cork is due to open in 2026. The hub at CUH will consist of operating theatres, procedure rooms, recovery sppatient department) spaces, and support accommodation. The primary purpose of surgical hubs is to enhance day case surgery and ambulatory capacity inaces, (out order to address waiting list pressures.”

Mr McGrath described the reply as “very vague”, adding that it lacked “the urgency needed”.

“We need a clear plan with specific timelines to make this new hospital a reality so that we can address the unacceptably long waiting lists which exist,” he said.

“I will be following up on this issue again with the minister for health.”