Nearly 4,400 scheduled procedures for children were cancelled over the past three years for reasons including lack of beds, patients being too unwell, and clinical decisions.
Figures from Children’s Health Ireland show that more than 700 operations did not proceed because a “ward bed [was] not available.”
However, the number of surgeries being cancelled has dropped substantially, according to data released under FOI.
In 2023, there were almost 1,800 procedures that did not go ahead, which fell to 1,575 in 2024.
Last year, the figure was 1,031 and there were just 82 planned operations called off due to the unavailability of a bed.
In the past three years, the figures show that 463 procedures were called off because a parent or guardian cancelled them.
There were 395 cases where a clinical decision was made not to proceed and at least 21 surgeries where equipment was not available.
A total of 57 procedures were cancelled because there were not enough clinical staff available but there were none of those last year.
Children’s Health Ireland said 117 operations did not go ahead due to the unavailability of an intensive care or high dependency bed.
However, that figure has also dropped markedly from 70 in 2023 to 36 in 2024, before falling even further last year to 11.
There were at least 31 cases where a parent or patient refused to go ahead with a procedure.
The largest category of cancellations arose where the patient was not medically fit enough to go through with the operation.
Altogether, there were around 1,100 in that category but with the same obvious drop in numbers in 2025.
A very small number of operations did not proceed where the patient was uncontactable.
However, Children’s Health Ireland declined to say how many cases were involved because the numbers were so low, saying it could disclose information about individual people.
There were 424 cases where a children’s hospital was ready to proceed with a procedure, but the patient did not turn up.
Around 320 scheduled operations were cancelled where medical review found the child no longer needed the planned procedure.
At least 29 cases were recorded where a patient had not properly fasted from food in advance of their appointment.
Children’s Health Ireland (CHI) also logged 126 cases where a procedure did not go ahead because the child needed further medical assessment.
At least 11 operations were cancelled where the operation beforehand went over time.
There were also 116 cases where priority was given to an emergency patient and at least 21 instances where the procedure was carried out elsewhere.
The records also showed at least 14 cases where the hospital schedule was overbooked and a very small number of cases where there were technical works.
CHI added there were around 400 surgeries cancelled for a combination of several different reasons of the type already reported above.
It said they could not provide a breakdown of the type or category of operation that was planned in each case.
The children’s hospital group said providing that data would involve examining so many individual patient records that it would cause a substantial and unreasonable interference with its work.