Martin Browne
Question:517. Deputy Martin Browne asked the Minister for Health the actions he will take to reduce the outpatient list at the diabetes clinic at the University Limerick Hospitals Group. [55607/21]
View answerTuesday, 16 November 2021
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Written answers
It is recognised that waiting times for scheduled appointments and procedures have been impacted in the last nineteen months as a direct result of the COVID-19 pandemic and more recently as a result of the ransomware attack.
On the 7th October I published the Acute Waiting List Action Plan. This plan, to run until December 2021, has a series of targeted measures that are designed to address the growth in waiting lists caused by Covid-19 and the cyber-attack.
In addition, my Department, the HSE and the National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF) are also working on a Multi Annual Waiting List Plan to bring waiting lists in line with Sláintecare targets over the coming years. This process will be overseen by a Ministerial Taskforce, chaired by the Secretary General of my Department and includes representatives from the HSE and NTPF. The plan will be informed by the lessons learned from the successful Vaccine Taskforce.
Long-term, the Chronic Disease Management Programme, which provides GP led care for GMS patients with one of four chronic diseases including type 2 diabetes, will help reduce these patient’s reliance on related hospital services. The programme commenced in 2020, is currently available to GMS patients aged 65 and older, and will be extended to all adult GMS patients from next year.
Specific to the UL Hospital Group, funding has been made available through the national clinical programme for diabetes to recruit three additional diabetic posts for the treatment of adult diabetes and this process is at an advanced stage. The recruitment process for a staff grade dietician is also ongoing. Two further consultant endocrinology posts and four further diabetic clinical nurse specialists (CNS) posts have been approved for University Limerick Hospital. Two of the four diabetic CNS posts have been successfully recruited and are due to commence in the coming months. The additional staffing measures will have a strong positive effect on waiting times for diabetes services.