Trust in CHI cannot be restored without full reset; board should stand down or be stood down – David Cullinane TD
9 April 2025
Sinn Féin spokesperson on Health, David Cullinane TD, has today reiterated Sinn Féin’s call for the removal of the existing board of Children’s Health Ireland, and for a new board to oversee the replacement of its executive management and clinical leadership team.
Deputy Cullinane said that trust in CHI has been shattered and that the process of restoring trust in CHI and the credibility of that institution must start with a full reset.
He added that planning for the move to the new Children’s Hospital should be taken over by the HSE and the Department of Health until such a time as a new executive team is in place in CHI.
Speaking in the Dáil today, the TD for Waterford asked the Minister for Health to move on this issue.
Teachta Cullinane said:
“Children were failed in the most serious of ways by Children’s Health Ireland. This scandal is heartbreaking for the families who are directly involved. It is also highly worrying for the many families affected by the hips scandal, and others who have been reaching out to us to say they cannot trust the quality of care which is or has been given to their children by CHI.
“Sinn Féin does not have confidence in the board or the executive of CHI.
“Trust in CHI has been shattered. The process of restoring trust in CHI, and the credibility of that institution, must start with a full reset. That means that the board should stand down or be stood down. A new board should be appointed, and its first task should be to appoint a new executive management and clinical leadership team to lead the major cultural and governance overhaul that is needed in CHI.
“The HIQA report clearly establishes that major, severe, and undeniable institutional failings allowed children to be put in harm’s way.
“There must be individual accountability for those who broke or skirted rules and processes, there must be political accountability for the ministers who failed to intervene at any point over the last seven years to fix the severe cultural and managerial issues in CHI, and there must also be institutional accountability for the failings of the leadership of CHI.
“This scandal is another set-back in the move to the new Children’s Hospital. We do not have faith that CHI has been effectively preparing for the transition, and the very serious management and governance issues raised in the HIQA report are related in many cases to the transition to the new hospital.
“A report last year from KPMG also raised concerns about preparedness. Until a new executive team is in place, we believe that responsibility for preparations for the new hospital should be taken over by the HSE and the Department of Health.”
