Over 5,000 neurosurgical procedures conducted over the last ten years in children aged 0 – 16 years at Temple Street’s Department of Paediatric Neurosurgery
Temple Street working in partnership with Children’s Hospital Group (CHG) to design world-class neurosurgery service at new children’s hospital
(Friday 26th October 2018 @ 7am) Today, Temple Street’s Department of Paediatric Neurosurgery is marking ten years of providing a dedicated national service and accepting referrals from all over Ireland. This Department is responsible for the provision of neurosurgical services at Temple Street and Beaumont Hospital, D9 and over the last ten years, the three Neurosurgeons working in the Department have conducted over 500 cases a year, which includes 75 cases a year in neonates (under two months of age.)
To mark this occasion Temple Street is hosting a national Symposium today titled ‘Celebrating 10 years of neurosurgery at Temple Street’ with a programme that comprises 13 clinicians/ speakers who are involved in the care and treatment of children requiring neurosurgery and 190 delegates are registered to attend this Symposium. Please see https://www.cuh.ie/departments/healthcare-professionals/neurosurgery/ for more information.
Speaking in advance of this Symposium, Mr Darach Crimmins, Consultant Paediatric Neurosurgeon, Temple Street explained ‘The neurosurgery specialty is concerned with the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of disorders which affect any portion of the nervous system including the brain, spinal cord, peripheral nerves, and extra-cranial cerebrovascular system. At Temple Street’s Department of Paediatric Neurosurgery, we treat all central, peripheral nervous system and spinal column diseases which are suitable for surgery. We also deal with neonatal and paediatric neurosurgical issues such as hydrocephalus, Spina Bifida, trauma, vascular abnormalities and other associated problems.’
There are three Consultant Paediatric Neurosurgeons and one Registrar attached to Temple Street’s Department of Paediatric Neurosurgery, all of who rotate, one at a time, between Temple Street and Beaumont Hospital. There is also one neurosurgery nurse coordinator, a Senior Clinical Neuro-psychologist and a Consultant Paediatrician who is attached to the Spina Bifida service. Currently 23% of the neurosurgical procedures performed by this service every year are conducted on an elective basis, 45% are performed on an urgent but scheduled basis and 32% are performed on an emergency basis.
Mr Crimmins added ‘In Beaumont Hospital where we perform neurosurgery on children over six years of age we have access to a large theatre with separate anaesthetic, scrub, preparation and sluice room which allows for very efficient turnaround but in Beaumont we have limited access to paediatric anaesthesis and PICU facilities. In Temple Street the threatre where we perform neurosurgery is small and relatively cramped for extra equipment but we do have comprehensive anaesthetic support and access to a PICU. However in Temple Street we also have no dedicated neurosurgical ward.’
Temple Street’s Department of Neurosurgery is working with the Children’s Hospital Group (CHG) to ensure the design and delivery of a world class paediatric neurosurgery service at the new children’s hospital (nch) which is currently being built on the St James’s Hospital campus site, D8 and which is scheduled to open in 2022. The Department is advocating for the following components at the nch;
- a dedicated neurosurgical theatre
- intraoperative MRI
- interventional radiology across from the dedicated theatre
- a dedicated neurosurgery ward with neurosurgical nurses (complemented by Advanced Nurse Practitioners) ensuring less dependencies on PICU
- a neurosurgical services coordinator
- an OPD with adjacent radiology/ X-Ray, neurology, psychology, physiology services
- availability of neurosurgical fellowships
- neurosurgery audit and research facilities
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For further information please contact Jane Curtin, Communications, Temple Street. Tel.: 087 938 0779
