Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 20 March 2024
1499. Deputy Paul Donnelly asked the Minister for Health the number of adults aged over 70 years currently on a waiting list for a cataract operation; and the hospitals that carry out this procedure, in tabular form. [12972/24]
View answerIt is recognised that waiting times for many scheduled appointments and procedures are too long and continue to be impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Department of Health continues to work with the HSE and the National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF) to identify ways to improve access to care.
The 2023 Waiting List Action Plan built on the foundational work done in previous plans, achieving significant progress in relation to waiting lists, including advancements made on overall waiting list reduction for the second year in a row, and progress made in addressing long waiting times.
The Department of Health is working with the HSE and the NTPF to finalise both the End of Year Report against the 2023 WLAP as well as the new WLAP 2024, which will take account of learnings from 2023 as well as the funding envelope provided for 2024.
With regard to the information requested by the Deputy, the attached document sets out the number of adults over 70 years of age currently on a waiting list for a cataract operation, by hospital and time-band.
In relation to the hospitals that carry out cataract procedures, as this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond directly to the Deputy on this matter as soon as possible.
PQ ref. 12972/24 - Adults aged over 70 years on Cataract Surgery Waiting Lists - by Hospital and timeband.
|
Hospital |
0-6 Mths |
6-12 Mths |
12-18 Mths |
18+ Mths |
SmallVolTimeBands |
Grand Total |
|
Galway University Hospitals |
162 |
57 |
29 |
20 |
268 |
|
|
Letterkenny University Hospital |
7 |
6 |
6 |
19 |
||
|
Mater Misericordiae University Hospital |
432 |
52 |
38 |
17 |
539 |
|
|
Nenagh Hospital |
290 |
115 |
405 |
|||
|
Royal Victoria Eye and Ear Hospital |
799 |
311 |
55 |
13 |
1,178 |
|
|
Sligo University Hospital |
181 |
84 |
29 |
13 |
307 |
|
|
SmallVolHospitals |
2 |
2 |
||||
|
South Infirmary Victoria University Hospital |
257 |
43 |
300 |
|||
|
St. Vincent's University Hospital |
86 |
86 |
||||
|
University Hospital Limerick |
232 |
111 |
11 |
354 |
||
|
University Hospital Waterford |
375 |
93 |
50 |
34 |
552 |
|
|
Grand Total |
2,814 |
873 |
218 |
97 |
8 |
4,010 |
