Future of children’s heart surgery services at stake

THE Health and Social Care Board will be holding a series of public meetings as part of the ongoing consultation process to consider the future service model for children in Northern Ireland who require heart surgery and other specialist interventional aspects of cardiac care.
By The Newsroom
Published 20th Nov 2012, 09:35 BST

Five public meetings will be held across Northern Ireland in Enniskillen, Ballymena, Derry, Belfast and Craigavon in November and December.

At the request of the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety, the HSCB in partnership with the Public Health Agency, established a Working Group in August 2012 to develop the consultation document.

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The membership of the Working Group includes representatives from the HSCB, Public Health Agency, Belfast Trust, Northern Ireland Ambulance Service, Western Trust, Patient and Client Council, parents and parent groups.

HSCB Director of Commissioning and Chair of the Working Group, Mr Dean Sullivan, said it was important that everyone with an interest in the future of children’s cardiac surgery has the opportunity to have their say.

Mr Sullivan said: “The Health and Social Care Board is committed to securing future arrangements that provide a high quality, safe, sustainable, accessible and timely service for children from Northern Ireland.

“The public meetings are important in ensuring the views of the public and stakeholders are heard and taken into account. They will also provide an opportunity for members of the Working Group to explain aspects of the consultation document and to answer questions. We would encourage everyone who wishes to make a contribution to this consultation process to either attend the meetings or respond to the consultation questionnaire.”

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The consultation process will run until 5pm on Friday, December 21. The consultation document and response form can be accessed on the Board’s website at www.hscboard.hscni.net/consult/PCCS_Consultation

Responses should be returned by email to [email protected] or in written form to Paediatric Congenital Cardiac Services Consultation, Health and Social Care Board, 12-22 Linenhall Street, Belfast, BT2 8BS.

Following the end of the consultation period, the Working Group will develop a post-consultation document, incorporating an analysis of responses for consideration by the Minister.

The Minister is expected to make a decision on the future model for provision of paediatric cardiac surgery and interventional cardiology for the population of Northern Ireland in early 2013.

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The following public meetings have been organised across Northern Ireland to facilitate the consultation process:

The first was held yesterday, Monday, November 19, in the Killyhevlin Hotel, Enniskillen and the next will be on Wednesday, November 21 at 8pm, in The Clock Tower, Tullyglass House Hotel, Ballymena.

Others will be on Monday, November 26 at 8pm - The Ballroom, Everglades Hotel, Derry/Londonderry; Wednesday, December 5 at 8pm - Stormont Ballroom, Stormont Hotel, Belfast, and Monday, December 10 at 8pm - Brownlow Community Hub, Craigavon.

Related topics:Northern IrelandBallymenaBelfastEnniskillenDerryCraigavon