Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 2 April 2019
337. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Health the reason a person (details supplied) has been waiting for over four years for an appointment with the pain management clinic in Galway University Hospital in view of the fact that he stated in Parliamentary Question No. 149 of 27 February 2019 that the average waiting time is 246 days; the reason for the discrepancy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15276/19]
View answerUnder the Health Act 2004, the Health Service Executive (HSE) is required to manage and deliver, or arrange to be delivered on its behalf, health and personal social services. Section 6 of the HSE Governance Act 2013 bars the Minister for Health from directing the HSE to provide a treatment or a personal service to any individual or to confer eligibility on any individual.
The National Waiting List Management Policy, a standardised approach to managing scheduled care treatment for in-patient, day case and planned procedures, since January 2014, has been developed to ensure that all administrative, managerial and clinical staff follow an agreed national minimum standard for the management and administration of waiting lists for scheduled care. This policy, which has been adopted by the HSE, sets out the processes that hospitals are to implement to manage waiting lists.
In relation to the particular query raised, as this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to the Deputy directly.
