‘Disturbing’ implications from child hip surgery report, says Taoiseach
By Gráinne Ní Aodha, PA
Taoiseach Micheál Martin has said there are “disturbing” implications if some of the claims made about unnecessary child hip surgeries are true.
An audit was conducted into a random anonymised sample of patients, aged one to seven years, who were operated on from 2021 to 2023.
The audit was carried out after concerns were raised around different standards and surgical practices for developmental dysplasia at Crumlin, Temple Street and the National Orthopaedic Hospital Cappagh.
The Taoiseach told the Dáil that the audit was at “an advanced stage” and warned against worrying parents through a “drip feed” of information.
Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald suggested in the Dáil that letters being sent to parents whose children were operated on 15 years ago was confirmation that the issue stretched back further.
“We’ve been raising it with you, conscious of all of those parents who are now asking themselves, was my child operated on (unnecessarily)? How could this have happened and what are the consequences now?”
She accused the Government and Children’s Health Ireland of having “stonewalled” parents.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin accused Ms McDonald of being “disingenuous” and said “the obvious thing” was to wait for the audit report to be published.
He said he was conscious of the “anxiety and concern” from parents as surgery for a child is traumatic for that family.
But he said that “bits of information here and there” would only add to parents’ worry.
“Anything we do in here must be done with that in mind, that we’re very conscious of anxiety that can be added to or created by anything we say, or by piecemeal information or by drip feed, in respect of this issue,” he said.
“To me, an experience tells me that when you ask someone to do an external audit, independently of politicians and of government, just let them finish their work.”
Asked again about the issue by Aontu leader Peadar Toibin, Mr Martin said that the possible implications of the report are “disturbing”.
“The implications are disturbing, if indeed some of the assertions come home to be the case, or emerge to be truthful.
“I think there are issues already, as I outlined in an earlier reply, changes to practice and protocols has occurred in terms of multidisciplinary approach, in terms of pre-operative assessment, and that clearly wasn’t there, it seems, in advance of this.”
