CHI informed of hip surgery concerns in 2023, Martin says

The Department of Health was notified of concerns around unnecessary child surgeries more than seven months after a protected disclosure was made within Children’s Health Ireland, the Taoiseach has said.

The Dail heard on Tuesday that an audit of paediatric hip dysplasia surgeries at Children’s Health Ireland (CHI) hospitals found that hundreds of children operated on between 2021 and 2023 did not meet the threshold for the procedure.

It had previously heard that 79% of those operated on at National Orthopaedic Hospital Cappagh and 60% of those at Temple Street did not meet the threshold for surgery in that time frame.

Taoiseach Micheal Martin told the Dail that concerns were raised under a protected disclosure to CHI, which is primarily funded by the HSE, in September 2023.

The Department of Health was informed months later on May 9, 2024. The Department said the then-Minister Stephen Donnelly was informed on May 16.

Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald 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.

She told the Dail the audit recommends that 561 children be recalled for an independent assessment, adding that parents have started to receive letters about the audit.

“These parents were provided with an email address in the letter, but many tell us they’re emailing and getting no response. They’re also ringing but getting no answer. It’s heaping stress on top of stress.”

The Dail heard that one mother received two letters as her twin daughters both had surgery in 2023, with Ms McDonald adding: “It took them months to recover, to learn to walk again, not to mention the agonising pain each of them are in – the sleepless nights, crying in pain.”

During Leaders’ Questions, she also told the Taoiseach of a girl who had operations on both hips and another mother who was “heartbroken” to think she may have put her child through surgery days before her third birthday “if there was never any need for it”.

Ms McDonald said Sinn Fein was aware of cases sought second opinions where they were told that not only did their child not need the operation, but they did not have hip dysplasia at all.

She said there was now a “genuine fear” that the problem dates back to years before 2021, as she had heard of parents of children receiving letters about operations from “a decade ago”.

Ms McDonald said parents have lost confidence in Children’s Health Ireland, which she said was “mired in scandal”.

She said: “Government sits on the sidelines, incapable of getting a handle on things.”

A report has uncovered that unnecessary hip surgeries were carried out on hundreds of young children at two Dublin hospitals, the Dail has been told.

Mr Martin acknowledged that the clinical audit “compounds the original trauma” of the surgery which was felt by children and parents.

He said the audit is “close to final stage” and said it “makes sense” to wait for its completion and presentation to parents.

Mr Martin told Ms McDonald that it was “deeply worrying for parents”.

He added: “Remember that this is first and foremost, a clinical issue, insofar as these are clinical decisions to take the step of surgery.”

“That’s pre-determined, should be done through multidisciplinary teams who decide that a child needs surgery for a specific condition.

“So this is an extremely serious situation that the assertion now is that quite a number of operations were carried out unnecessarily.”

The Taoiseach said it was his understanding that “concerns” over unnecessary hip surgeries “were initially raised internally within CHI under a protected disclosure in September 2023” relating to different thresholds for surgery being applied in different hospitals.

He added: “The Department of Health was notified about this matter on the ninth of May 2024.”

Mr Martin said he expected the details of the audit to be published and called for “full transparency” into the matter.