Vol. 411 No. 6
69 Mr. Kenny asked the Minister for Health if he will indicate the waiting periods and number of applicants for the following treatments within the Western Health Board area (a) orthodontic operations, (b) cataract operations, (c) dental treatment; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Because of the special allocation of £3 million for dental services which the Government made available in the 1991 budget, I was able to make an additional allocation for orthodontic treatments available to the Western Health Board which enabled the board, inter alia, to bring a further 115 secondary care orthodontic cases into treatment in the current year. The board have now a total of 317 cases undergoing treatment during 1991. This is a significant improvement on the position in previous years.
Despite the progress made, however, there are still 15 children in category A, which is the category of greatest severity, and a total of about 1,800 children in other categories on the waiting list and I have asked the board to draw up a programme to deal with these cases on a priority basis as a matter of urgency.
The average waiting period for cataract operations is two years and there are currently 560 patients awaiting cataract surgery.
The Deputy will appreciate that the admission of a patient to hospital for treatment is a matter for the hospital authority and the consultant in charge of the case. Waiting lists are kept under regular review and priority is given to urgent cases.
