Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 23 July 2019
1540. Deputy Fiona O'Loughlin asked the Minister for Health the plans in place to deal with the large waiting list of patients requiring spinal surgery at Tallaght hospital; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33342/19]
View answerReducing waiting time for patients for hospital operations and procedures is a key priority for Government. 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 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.
With regard to overall measures being implemented at Tallaght Hospital to address spinal surgery waiting lists, I have asked the HSE to respond to the Deputy Directly.
