Séamus Hughes
Question:116 Mr. Hughes asked the Minister for Health when a person (details supplied) in County Mayo will be called for a cataract operation.
Written Answers. - Hospital Waiting List.
The patient concerned is on the in-patient waiting list for ophthalmic treatment at University College Hospital, Galway 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 urgent cases are always accorded 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 aware that the £20 million major action programme which is now underway in relation to hospital in-patient waiting lists was specifically targeted at those areas of hospital treatment where long waiting times are causing the greatest hardship. The Western Health Board has been allocated £2,192,600 from the waiting list fund which is the largest allocation to any health agency. This will enable the board to carry out an additional 1,884 procedures this year of which 250 will be cataract operations. This should impact significantly on the average waiting times in these areas.