asked the Minister for Health if there is a two year waiting list for cataract operations in the Mater Hospital and when a person (details supplied) in Dublin 7 who requires the operation urgently will receive it.
Written Answers. - Cataract Operations Waiting List.
136.
I would like to explain that the admission of a patient to hospital is a matter for the clinical decision of the consultant concerned and the hospital authority. Non-urgent (elective) cases may be put on a waiting list to ensure that emergency and urgent cases can be dealt with promptly. I would suggest to the Deputy that if the patient's condition has deteriorated she should return to her general practitioner who would be in the best position to assess and then if necessary to stress the urgency of the case to the consultant concerned.
In any event, I understand from the Mater Hospital that in general patients do not wait longer than a year for cataract operations.