Séamus Hughes
Question:194 Mr. Hughes asked the Minister for Health when a person (details supplied) in County Mayo will be called for a heart by-pass operation in view of the history of this case.
Written Answers. - Hospital Waiting Lists.
The patient concerned is on the waiting list for treatment at the Mater Hospital, Dublin, but it is not possible to give an admission date at this stage. As the Deputy will appreciate, the scheduling of admission to hospital is a matter for the consultant concerned and each patient is assessed to determine their medical priority. Should the patient feel concerned about his condition he should return to his general practitioner who is in the best position to emphasise the urgency of his case directly to the consultant.
The Deputy will be pleased to learn that I have made £1 million available under the major action programme on waiting lists to the Mater Hospital — National Cardiac Centre — to provide for an additional 250 operations in 1993. This should impact significantly on the average waiting times for cardiac surgery.
Séamus Hughes
Question:196 Mr. Hughes asked the Minister for Health when arrangements will be made to allow a person (details supplied) in County Mayo to have a double hip operation in view of her age and the fact that she is living alone.
The patient concerned is on the out-patient waiting list for assessment at Mayo General Hospital, Castlebar, but it is not possible to give an appointment date at this stage. As the Deputy will appreciate, the scheduling of appointments is a matter for the consultant concerned. Should the patient feel concerned about her condition, she should return to her general practitioner who is in the best position to emphasise the urgency of her case directly to the consultant.
As part of the £20 million major action programme on waiting lists in 1993, I have allocated £2,192,600 to the Western Health Board to help reduce the time patients have to wait for operations in a range of specialities including orthopaedics. This allocation includes provision for the equipping and commissioning of the new Clean Air Theatres at Merlin Park Hospital to enable the Western Health Board to perform additional orthopaedic procedures.