Sir, – Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) surgery is soon to be available at Beaumont. ("Sea change in management of Parkinson's", September 2nd). This has long been campaigned for and is to be welcomed.
The repatriation of DBS cases from the UK, such as myself, from UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology & Neurosurgery in London, and other Irish patients from other centres in the UK, such as Bristol, Oxford and Liverpool, is also proposed.
Regularly witnessing the scale of the neurological services, the essential post-surgery support and the efficiencies and resources of the NHS in London, never mind the non-existence of long waiting lists similar to those in Ireland, I suspect this implementation will take time and considerable investment to ramp up to equivalent standards of efficacy.
While the intention and aspiration is to be welcomed, Ireland doesn’t have sufficient neurologists and neurology services.
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This is more’s the pity when one considers the cutting-edge research in neurology, and in particular, in disorders of movement such as Parkinson’s and dystonia, carried out in our universities and hospitals.
I may be wrong, but I suspect the Department of Health is prioritising significant savings to the exchequer, and not the prompt patient care and much-needed investment in neurological services long campaigned for by the Neurological Alliance of Ireland, the various neurological charities, patient advocates and the medical profession. – Yours, etc,
STEVE PETHERBRIDGE,
Swords,
Co Dublin.