Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 9 July 2015
12. Deputy Charlie McConalogue asked the Minister for Health the current waiting time for new referrals for an outpatient orthopaedic appointment in Letterkenny General Hospital in County Donegal compared to the national target time; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27662/15]
View answerImproving waiting lists for scheduled care is a key priority for Government. In January I put in place maximum permissible waiting times for inpatient and day case treatment and outpatient appointments of 18 months by 30 June and 15 months by year end. As of 30 June, the HSE is reporting a 99.6% achievement against the maximum permissible waiting time for inpatient and day case treatment and 96% achievement against the maximum permissible waiting time for outpatient appointments.
In respect of patients at Letterkenny General Hospital, as of 30 June 2015, the hospital has met the 18 month maximum permissible waiting time. The HSE, in conjunction with Hospital Groups, focused on achieving waiting list requirements through maximising the use of internal capacity within and across Hospital Groups in the first instance, in addition to validating waiting lists and facilitating additional clinics where capacity allowed.
In April 2015 Letterkenny General Hospital introduced physiotherapy-led musculoskeletal outpatient clinics to address the needs of those referred with lower back pain to provide significant additional capacity for this cohort of patients and support the efficient use of hospital resources. Judicious outsourcing to private care providers was also utilised.
At present there are 2,326 patients awaiting orthopaedic outpatient appointments at Letterkenny Hospital. Of these, 969 are waiting less than 6 months, 776 are waiting between 6 and 12 months and 581 are waiting over 12 months. Waiting times for individual appointments are dependent on whether patient requirements are classified as urgent or routine.
I look forward to continued progress in Letterkenny Hospital addressing these waiting times as part of achieving the Government's priority to see progressive improvement in the area.
