Vol. 396 No. 5
83 Mr. Byrne asked the Minister for Health if he will outline his plans to alleviate the waiting lists for admission to Our Lady's Hospital for Sick Children, Crumlin, Dublin 12, where there is at present a list of applicants for ear, nose and throat facilities numbering 2,400 children whose waiting period is as long as 12 months; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
The Deputy will be aware that the Government allocated an additional £15 million to the health services last year. Our Lady's Hospital for Sick Children, Crumlin, received £385,000 from this allocation which was to be used, inter alia, for the provision of additional ENT in-patient public beds and this has been successful in reducing access time for in-patient facilities particularly for urgent cases.
The figures quoted by the Deputy are incorrect. There are approximately 450 patients on the in-patient waiting list the majority of which are non-urgent cases. The waiting period for new out-patient appointments is approximately ten months but general practitioners are in a position to contact the consultants directly if they feel that a particular case is urgent. These patients are always given priority.
