Skip to main content
Normal View

Hospital Waiting Lists Data

Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 12 June 2019

Wednesday, 12 June 2019

Questions (168)

Louise O'Reilly

Question:

168. Deputy Louise O'Reilly asked the Minister for Health the medically advised waiting time for cataract surgeries compared to the waiting times for cataract surgeries nationally and per hospital in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24389/19]

View answer

Written answers

Budget 2019 announced that the Government had further increased investment in tackling waiting lists, with funding to the NTPF increasing from €55 million in 2018 to €75 million in 2019. The joint Department of Health, HSE, and NTPF Scheduled Care Access Plan 2019 was published on 11th March.

Under the Plan the HSE, in line with the National Service Plan, will deliver 1.155 million elective inpatient and day case discharges at a value of €1.4 billion in 2019. The Scheduled Care Access Plan includes:

- detailed plans from the NTPF to fund 25,000 IPDC treatments, 5,000 Gastro Intestinal Scopes and 40,000 outpatient first appointments.

- It is also projected that for ten identified high volume procedures, including cataracts, all clinically suitable patients waiting more than 6 months will be offered treatment in 2019. These 10 procedures account for over a third of the active inpatient day case waiting list and represent 60% of NTPF planned activity in 2019.

At the end of July 2017, the number of people waiting for a cataract procedure was 10,024. Under the Inpatient Day Case Access Plan 2018, Cataracts were one of the specialties targeted by the NTPF, and by end December 2018, the number of patients waiting had fallen to 6,440, a reduction of 36%. The number of patients waiting for a Cataract procedure at the end of April 2019 had further reduced to 6,151, with 582 patients waiting over 9 months. This represents a reduction of 3,789 or 87% when compared to July 2017, when there were 4,371 patients waiting over 9 months for a cataract operation.

Under the 2019 Scheduled Care Access Plan, all clinically suitable patients waiting longer than 6 months for a cataract procedure will be offered treatment funded by the NTPF.

In relation to the specific matter raised by the Deputy, the table provides a breakdown of the number of people awaiting cataract surgery by time band nationally by hospital at the end of April 2019, and I have asked the HSE to respond directly to the Deputy on the medically advised waiting time for cataract surgery.

Waiting List for Cataract Procedures by Hospital by Wait Time Band as at 25/04/2019

0-3 Mths

3-6 Mths

6-9 Mths

9-12 Mths

12-15 Mths

15-18 Mths

18+ Mths

Grand Total

Mater Misericordiae University Hospital

493

468

319

42

8

10

15

1355

University Hospital Waterford

333

329

341

122

33

12

32

1202

Royal Victoria Eye and Ear Hospital

523

265

89

43

10

6

8

944

Galway University Hospitals

309

274

118

18

1

1

3

724

Sligo University Hospital

192

201

139

25

32

7

19

615

South Infirmary Victoria University Hospital

195

162

128

27

4

1

1

518

St. Vincent's University Hospital

135

81

56

10

282

University Hospital Limerick

162

44

18

15

10

11

14

274

Nenagh Hospital

46

86

33

18

7

3

5

198

Letterkenny University Hospital

10

15

2

5

1

1

34

CHI at Temple St

2

1

1

1

5

Grand Total

2400

1925

1244

326

107

51

98

6151

Top
Share