Vol. 418 No. 1
125 Mr. G. O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Health when a person (details supplied) in County Cork will be called for an urgent by-pass operation at the Cork Regional Hospital; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
I have had inquiries made of Cork Regional Hospital in connection with this case. The hospital authorities have indicated that this patient's name was added to the waiting list on 6 March 1992. The average waiting time for cardio-thoracic surgery at Cork Regional Hospital is eight to ten weeks.
The admission of an individual patient to hospital is a clinical decision for the consultant in charge of the case. Priority is given according to medical need and the patient's position on the waiting list. If the patient's condition is causing concern, it is open to his or her general practitioners to stress the urgency of the case to the consultant concerned.
