Second hospital has NTPF waiting list funding suspended over ‘potential financial irregularities'
National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF)
has suspended funding for initiatives aimed at tackling waiting lists in another public hospital on foot of 'potential financial irregularities'.
The NTPF said today that it had alerted Minister for Health
Jennifer Carroll MacNeill
and the
HSE.
The identity of the hospital concerned has not been disclosed.
The NTPF pays for patients on waiting lists to receive treatment in both the public and private system.
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In public hospitals it pays for patients who are waiting longest to receive treatment outside core working hours – at night-time or at weekends – with staff paid additional money to carry out work in their own time.
This practice is known as 'insourcing'.
Last week the NTPF said it had
suspended funding for insourcing
at facilities operated by the Children's Health Ireland (CHI). CHI runs the three paediatric hospitals in Dublin.
In a statement today the organisation said it had alerted the Department of Health and HSE a number of weeks ago 'about potential financial irregularities in relation to NTPF-funded insourcing work at another public hospital'. It said it had suspended all insourcing work with that hospital since April 11th.
It said it 'immediately informed the department and HSE of these concerns and is working with them in relation to the ongoing review. The matter has been referred to the HSE's Internal Audit team. The NTPF is restricted from making further comment at this stage.'
Last week the NTPF said it had suspended funding following concerns raised in an internal CHI audit originally drawn up in 2022 but which was not published or shared elsewhere at the time.
This internal report raised questioned over whether a series of five special clinics run by a consultant at CHI over a number of Saturdays for patients on waiting lists were needed and whether the children concerned could have been treated using capacity already in the public hospitals system.
The consultant concerned had been paid €35,800 by the NTPF.
The NTPF said on Wednesday that following a meeting of its board that funding is to be restored immediately for insourcing arrangements at CHI hospitals.
It said this followed assurances provided by CHI in relation to its ongoing compliance with existing NTPF protocols and procedures.
The NTPF said it 'will now increase governance and oversight across its insourcing work with public hospitals, who up to now have been responsible for this internal governance. The NTPF has notified the Department of Health and HSE of this decision.'
Its chief executive Fiona Brady said: 'The board and executive of the NTPF take their responsibilities very seriously and will take whatever actions are necessary to ensure our spend with public hospitals is fully protected for the benefit of public patients. Any proven misuse of public money by public institutions will be treated with the gravity it deserves'.
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