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Heart Surgery Fiasco

Friday 27 June 2003

The NI Chest, Heart and Stroke Association has called for an independent inquiry into the management of cardiac surgery in Northern Ireland after a Consultant Surgeon quit the Royal Hospitals Trust to take up a job in Glasgow.

The NI Chest, Heart and Stroke Association has called for an independent inquiry into the management of cardiac surgery in Northern Ireland after a Consultant Surgeon quit the Royal Hospitals Trust to take up a job in Glasgow.

Mark Danton is the second heart surgeon to be lost to Northern Ireland in the last two years. His departure threatens to reduce even further the number of cardiac operations being carried out in Belfast. Last year, the Royal, which is supposed to do 1,100 operations annually, did only 760 – 40 fewer than the very poor performance of 800 in recent years.

Andrew Dougal, Chief Executive of the Northern Ireland Chest, Heart and Stroke Association, said: “The Royal Hospitals Trust seems incapable of effective planning. The waiting list for cardiac surgery has remained high because of shortages of different categories of staff at different times. At one stage there is a shortage of cardiac surgical nurses, at the next stage there is a shortage of technicians or perfusionists. Now we will have a shortage of cardiac surgeons.

“The Royal is also attempting to take credit for a decrease in the waiting list, which is down by one third. But the numbers are down only because the Assembly voted £1m for heart operations to be undertaken outside Northern Ireland. This has resulted in people being given the choice of travelling to London, Glasgow or Dublin. More than 300 people were able to travel to London, Glasgow or Dublin for their operations. NICHSA commends the Assembly and the 4 Health Boards for the efficient use of public funds.”

The NICHSA is writing to the Health Minister, Angela Smyth, to demand an urgent independent inquiry into both the strategic and operational management of cardiac surgery in Northern Ireland.
Said Mr Dougal: “This Association and patient groups would give full and urgent co-operation to such an inquiry”.

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