Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said he is concerned about the revelations regarding orthopaedic surgery at Temple Street Children's Hospital in Dublin.
Yesterday, the Health Service Executive announced an external review led by a UK expert into spinal surgeries involving 19 children.
"More and more I read about it, the more concerned I am. The more bothered I am," Mr Varadkar said.
"I don't want to jump to conclusions because this will have to be investigated properly and thoroughly. I know there's going to be an examination by the Medical Council as well.
"If you have a child waiting for surgery or needing surgery, you think at the very least that if they got the surgery, that's going to make them better, not worse," he added.
The HSE ordered an external review that will primarily focus on the clinical care provided by an individual consultant based at Children’s Health Ireland (CHI) at Temple Street.
The executive said the review arises from very serious concerns identified by CHI since last year relating to poor surgical outcomes in spinal surgery at the hospital, plus the use of a certain spinal technique and the use of unauthorised implantable devices.
CHI said that three patients who had surgery involving metalwork were affected and have been contacted.
It also said that it will write to all patients/families on spinal surgery waiting lists before 26 September to inform them of any potential changes regarding their treatment or consultations.
The HSE said that late last year, senior management at CHI were made aware of patient safety concerns in relation to the treatment of a small number of patients with spina bifida who had spinal surgery at Temple Street.
The surgeon who is the subject of the external review relating to the hospital is not suspended.
The HSE has confirmed that he elected to pause surgeries pending the reviews.
Family 'broken' by spinal surgery care at Temple Street
The mother of a 14-year-old boy who requires urgent surgery for scoliosis has said her family are broken, distraught and angry after the reports.
Megan Murphy said her son Paddy has been waiting for years for surgery.
Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland she said they cannot believe it has come to this, adding that all she had heard from CHI was "we are deeply sorry".
"How is deeply sorry going to fix the child that has passed away or the children that have had their bodies go through so much their lives are ruined. How is deeply sorry going to change that," she said.
Although Paddy is not one of the affected children in the review, he is one of the children that has "deteriorated at a fast pace" for years, Ms Murphy said.
"We want answers, we have had no communication whatsoever from Temple Street/CHI," she said.
Ms Murphy said Paddy's curvature is higher up in his spine and affects his lung function.
Six months ago he was already minus 20% or more lung function, she said, adding that it could be more now and that he will never get his lung function back.
"He's on a very difficult road and a bad road and we don't want to think about what could be the outcome if he is left too much longer," she said.
We were told last year that complex spinal surgeries were to be halted but no one from CHI has reached out to us or other families to explain anything, she said.
She said no indication has been given as to when Paddy's surgery would take place.
"With everything that has come out, I don’t know how I’m ever supposed to trust my child in the hands of CHI again after what’s been released over the weekend."
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Ms Murphy said that somebody needed to be held accountable.
"They're just dealing with the hot spots and forgetting about the rest of us again. There's a lot of people affected here all round and sorries just aren't going to cut it again," she said.
Scoliosis Advocacy Network legal advisor Raymond Bradley has said that the reviews already completed need to be published in full in order for the concerns of parents to be addressed.
"It's necessary that that those reports are fully released, not a synopsised or selected version," he said.
Speaking on the same programme, he said families will have questions on the back of yesterday's news.
"It's understandable this morning that every parent who is on that lengthy and ever-lengthening wait list must be concerned about their child on two basis. One, when will the surgery occur, because it's an ever-deteriorating situation. And two, if and when that surgery occurs, can you trust the system."
Mr Bradley said the welfare of the children should be at the centre of the concerns.
"We as a nation have values. Our children should be uppermost in those values, and for a hospital system to be unable to address in a timely manner surgical requirement that results in an ongoing deterioration is absolutely unacceptable," he said.
'Absolutely appalling' - Cullinane
Speaking in Mayo, Sinn Féin's Health Spokesperson David Cullinane said he had spoken to some of the families affected over the last number of hours and said they were heartbroken and devastated.
"What we need now is full and open disclosure. We need the external investigation to do its work pretty quickly. All of the facts have to be established.
"But more importantly at this point, we have to make sure that everything possible is being done to support those families who have been so badly let down on so many occasions because of long waiting list and it's absolutely appalling."
Mr Cullinane said that waiting lists have always been a problem in this area and that families would be further incapacitated by what he called "this crisis" at the hospital.
"Obviously we need more capacity. We have to now look at outsourcing abroad, which was something that was offered in the past. It's regrettable that we don't have the capacity in the system years on from promises that were made. But the priority today has to be to give every comfort and support to the families affected."
There will now be a review of 19 spinal surgery cases at Temple Street.
Mr Cullinane said there was a need now to look at broadening the scope of the review and to have a wider examination into services in all children's hospitals.
"Well, I think if we want to restore confidence into services, I think we need to have as broad or a view as possible is what has to look at all of the services and we also have to make sure that there is full support for all families because as well as those 19 heartbroken families, there will be many more asking questions in relation to their children who have received services in Temple Street and they will want assurances."
The deputy said he welcomed the fact that a helpline is to be established for those affected and he urged the health minister and the HSE to engage with families and give them support and reassurance and any updates they need.
Social Democrats TD Róisín Shortall said the two existing reviews commissioned by Children's Health Ireland should be published immediately.
She said that if further work needs to be done, it should be done in a way where there is clear independent oversight.
Speaking on RTÉ's Drivetime, she said the response to the issue has been wholly inadequate and what is needed in circumstances like this is full open disclosure and complete transparency.
CHI opened a helpline that will operate Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm on (01) 409 6117.
In a statement, it said that the situation has caused concern for other patients and families in Temple Street.
It said the helpline is for families of patients who are on the spinal surgery list, with 54 currently on that list at Temple Street while a total of 261 are on it across CHI.
Additional reporting Fergal Bowers, Teresa Mannion
