Michael Moynihan
Question:1504. Deputy Michael Moynihan asked the Minister for Health the number of persons waiting for orthopaedic surgery in County Cork; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33219/19]
View answerTuesday, 23 July 2019
Questions (1504)
Written answers
I am conscious that waiting times are often unacceptably long and of the burden that this places on patients and their families. In this regard, the Government is committed to improving waiting times for hospital appointments and procedures.
Budget 2019 announced that the Government has further increased investment in tackling waiting lists, with funding to the National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF) increasing from €55 million in 2018 to €75 million in 2019. The joint Department of Health/HSE/NTPF Scheduled Care Access Plan 2019 was published in March and sets out measures to improve care for patients waiting for scheduled care in 2019 by reducing waiting times for inpatient/day case treatment and outpatient appointments. The plan places a strong focus on ten high-volume Inpatient/Day Case procedures, including hip/knee replacements. When combined with HSE activity, it is projected that the NTPF will be in a position to offer treatment to all clinically suitable patients waiting more than 6 months for one of these high-volume procedures.
The NTPF advise that over recent months they have placed a particular focus on engaging with hospital groups and individual hospitals to identify waiting list proposals. The NTPF welcomes proposals from all acute hospitals for initiatives to improve access for patients on waiting lists.
The data requested by the Deputy is outlined in the following table.
|
Row Labels |
0-3 Months |
3-6 Months |
6-9 Months |
9-12 Months |
12-15 Months |
15-18 Months |
18+ Months |
Grand Total |
|
Bantry General Hospital |
11 |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
11 |
|
Cork University Hospital |
5 |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
5 |
|
Small Volume Hospitals |
- |
1 |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
1 |
|
South Infirmary Victoria University Hospital |
163 |
94 |
67 |
30 |
26 |
22 |
30 |
432 |
|
Grand Total |
179 |
95 |
67 |
30 |
26 |
22 |
30 |
449 |