Hospital Waiting Lists

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 13 December 2011

Tuesday, 13 December 2011

Questions (416, 417, 418, 419, 420, 421, 422)

Billy Kelleher

Question:

426 Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Minister for Health the basis for the difference in calculating waiting lists by the Health Service Executive and the special delivery unit. [40257/11]

Billy Kelleher

Question:

473 Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Minister for Health the criteria he uses to calculate the length of time patients are on waiting lists for surgery; if it has changed over the course of the year; if so, the way this has come about; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39728/11]

Billy Kelleher

Question:

474 Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Minister for Health the reason the number of patients who are waiting for more than one year for surgery in Galway University Hospital has increased in one year to 1,496 from 600; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39729/11]

Billy Kelleher

Question:

475 Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Minister for Health if he will provide in tabular form the number of patients who are waiting for more than one year for surgery in each hospital; the same figure for this time last year; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39730/11]

Billy Kelleher

Question:

476 Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Minister for Health if the recently published figures from the Health Service Executive regarding 30,756 patients on the waiting lists for surgery are correct; if they have improved or disimproved; the actions he is taking to reduce them; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39731/11]

Billy Kelleher

Question:

477 Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Minister for Health if the number of patients waiting for more than one year for surgery, now calculated by the Health Service Executive as 3,117, as of September, is correct; if incorrect, if he will provide the correct figure for those waiting for more than one year; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39732/11]

Billy Kelleher

Question:

478 Deputy Billy Kelleher asked the Minister for Health if the methodology used to calculate the number of patients waiting for surgery is the one used by the Health Service Executive or the National Treatment Purchase Fund; if it is validated by European guidelines on waiting lists; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39733/11]

Written answers

Minister for Health (Deputy James Reilly)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 426 and 473 to 478, inclusive, together.

In July of this year I requested that public hospitals ensure that, by the end of 2011, they have no patients waiting more than 12 months for treatment. In order to achieve this target a new calculation methodology was introduced, the new method is described as the ‘Maximum Waiting Time Target'.

The NTPF working on behalf of the Special Delivery Unit was first tasked with creating a comprehensive list of those persons — who if not treated — would be waiting for over 12 months by the 31st of December 2011. The creation of such a list therefore had to effectively search into the future to estimate the number of people that might require treatment. In July of this year the NTPF established the list by ascertaining all the names of people who had been listed for treatment on or before the 31st of December 2010. The list contained approximately 14,000 names. It is clear that that database had to include ALL of the patients who would have reached or exceeded a 12 month target on the 31st of December 2011. This list is referred to as the Primary Targeting List (PTL).

This explains why the list being operated by the NTPF for the SDU is calculated on a different basis to the list offered by the HSE in its performance reports. The HSE list, also compiled by the NTPF, is a snapshot and relates to those who had already been waiting longer than 12 months on a specific day. By the end of August it was determined that 9,657 persons listed on or before 31 December 2010 continued to be available for treatment. Of these all but 684 had received their treatment by 8th December last.

The NTPF determined in August that University College Hospital Galway (UCHG) had 2,530 patients whose treatment must be provided by the end of December this year in order for UCHG to meet the new target that no patient could be waiting for longer than 12 months for treatment at the end of this year. I can confirm that as of 8th December this number has fallen to 455. The NTPF and the SDU continue to work closely with UCHG to reduce this figure further.

In relation to the Deputy's question regarding the 30,756 September figure for patients waiting over three months, I can confirm that this number is correct. However I wish to advise the Deputy that the number for people waiting over 3 months at the end of November is 26,832 indicating a significant reduction of 13%. The NTPF calculation methodology has been in place for some time and there have been no changes in this regard.

The NTPFs Patient Treatment Register was established in 2005 and is compliant with the Council of Europe Recommendations. The number of patients who are waiting for more than one year for surgery in each hospital now and this time last year is set out in the following table. The figures are from the Patient Treatment Register and show the numbers of patients waiting 12 months or more as of 8 December 2011. They differ somewhat from the PTL.

8th December 2011

HOSPITAL NAME	Dec-10> 12mths	Dec-11> 12mths	Variation
AMNCH (Tallaght)	37	1	-36
Bantry General Hospital	0	0	0
Beaumont	155	50	-105
Cappagh Orthopaedic Hospital	12	2	-10
Cavan General Hospital	5	0	-5
Children’s University Hospital, Temple Street	54	1	-53
Connolly (Blanchardstown)	0	1	1
Cork University Hospital	183	37	-146
Kerry General Hospital	0	0	0
Kilcreene Orthopaedic	25	0	-25
Letterkenny General Hospital	20	1	-19
Louth County Hospital	2	0	-2
Mallow General Hospital	0	0	0
Mater Misericordiae Hospital	79	15	-64
Mayo General Hospital	0	0	0
Mercy University Hospital	42	0	-42
Merlin Park Hospital Galway	25	50	25
Midland Regional at Mullingar	24	1	-23
Midland Regional at Portlaoise	1	0	-1
Midland Regional at Tullamore	34	0	-34
Mid-Western Regional Hospital, Croom	2	0	-2
Mid-Western Regional Hospital, Dooradoyle	55	30	-25
Mid-Western Regional Hospital, Ennis	0	4	4
Mid-Western Regional Hospital, Nenagh	0	0	0
Monaghan General Hospital	0	0	0
Naas General Hospital	0	0	0
Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Drogheda	4	0	-4
Our Lady’s Hospital for Sick Children Crumlin	139	0	-139
Our Lady’s Hospital Navan	12	0	-12
Portiuncula General Hospital	0	0	0
Roscommon County Hospital	0	0	0
Royal Victoria Eye and Ear	1	0	-1
Sligo General Hospital	10	3	-7
South Infirmary — Victoria University Hospital	8	3	-5
South Tipperary General	0	0	0
St. Columcille’s Loughlinstown	0	0	0
St. James’s Hospital	0	0	0
St. John’s Hospital Limerick*	1	0	-1
St. Luke’s Hospital, Kilkenny	2	0	-2
St. Michael’s, Dun Laoghaire	0	0	0
St. Vincent’s University Hospital	11	0	-11
University College Hospital Galway	94	430	336
Waterford Regional Hospital	46	0	-46
Wexford General Hospital	0	0	0
Grand Totals	1,083	629	-454