The Government has committed less than one-third of the money it promised for the treatment of heart disease over the last three years, and has also failed to honour a pledge that money raised by extra tax on tobacco would be used to fund the national cardiovascular strategy, according to a leading patient advocacy group.
The Irish Heart Foundation (IHF) criticised the Government for failing to increase the number of consultant cardiologists in line with its own stated priorities. It is also concerned at the delay in implementing secondary prevention programmes in primary care as outlined in the strategy.
And in a survey of acute hospitals in the Republic the foundation found:
• Average wait to see a cardiologist: 22 weeks;
• Average wait for echocardiograph - diagnostic ultrasound for heart disease: 19 weeks;
• Average wait for basic angina test: 10 weeks;
• Average number of people waiting to see a cardiologist per hospital: 194;
• Average number of people waiting for heart ultrasound per hospital: 286.
According to the group, €190 million was promised for the cardiovascular strategy over a five-year period.
By 2002, this should have amounted to €114 million. However, in a progress report produced by the Department of Health at the end of last year, only €34 million had been committed by then to the heart strategy.
Referring to the commitment by the then Minister for Health, Mr Brian Cowen, to fund the strategy "either in whole or in part by increasing taxation on tobacco consumption", the president of the IHF, Dr Brian Maurer, said: "We are concerned that money raised by increasing taxation on tobacco has not been made available to fund the strategy as pledged by a previous Minister for Health."
In its progress report published at the end of November 2001, the Department of Health identified a number of priorities for 2002. One of these was to implement an advisory group recommendation that 24 additional consultant cardiology posts be ratified in 2002. According to the IHF, six months later no steps have been taken to recruit additional specialists. Sources have pointed out that it takes up to 18 months after advertising to fill a post and so no additional consultants will be in place until the end of 2003.
Referring to the effects of this delay, Dr Maurer said there was no point in putting other staff in place if those who would drive the strategy were not there. "We have seven cardiologists per million people having to deliver every aspect of cardiovascular services. We cannot undertake the implementation of the strategy because we are so stretched - it is impossible. "To fail to appoint the cardiologists who will supervise the coracoclavicular strategy is to guarantee its failure," he said.
In Europe, the average number of cardiologists is 35 per million people.