The Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, has sided with a hospital in his own constituency in its battle for a consultant paediatric post which Comhairle na nOspideál decided should be based at another hospital.
Temple Street Children's Hospital, in the Taoiseach's constituency, has been involved for several years in a disagreement with our Lady's Hospital for Sick Children in Crumlin and the National Children's Hospital in Tallaght over the filling of a vacant post for a permanent consultant paediatric surgeon with an interest in urology.
In an attempt to overcome disagreement between the hospitals on how the post should be structured, Comhairle na nOspideál, the body responsible for regulating the number and type of consultant appointments in hospitals, reviewed paediatric surgery services in 1998 and recommended that specialist paediatric surgery and neonatal surgery should be conducted in Crumlin with the other two children's hospitals continuing to provide non-specialist surgery and less complex urology services.
It said that because of the relatively small volume of cases and the high level of expertise required, specialist paediatric surgery and neonatal surgery should be provided in one unit.
The unit, it said, should be Crumlin.
However, its report was never implemented and Temple Street has continued to protest against its recommendation.
Temple Street has also claimed comhairle acted outside its powers in making its decision. Documents obtained under the Freedom of Information Act show Mr Ahern intervened last September by writing to the Minister for Health, Mr Martin. He wrote: "Having discussed the matter at length with senior consultants, staff and management, my opinion is that any further erosion of Temple Street's services would have grave consequences for the future of Temple Street hospital and indeed the standard of treatment available to the child population of north county Dublin and Dublin city".
He added: "I would be grateful if, through your office, a solution could be arrived at which would guarantee the equal distribution of paediatric surgery posts between Temple Street and Crumlin Hospitals and the continued maintenance of the services in Temple Street."
No solution has been arrived at to date, however, and the vital post remains vacant.