Vol. 492 No. 4
23 Mr. O'Shea asked the Minister for Health and Children the action, if any, he will take to deal with the situation whereby there has been a 117 per cent increase in the waiting lists for elderly public patients in the Waterford area; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14235/98]
The increase referred to relates to the waiting list for long stay facilities in St. Patrick's, Waterford and St. Joseph's, Dungarvan, which stood at six on 31 March 1997 and 13 on 31 March 1998. There was no increase in the waiting list numbers for St. Joseph's in this period, which remained at four. However, figures for St. Patrick's show an increase from two to nine for the same period. I understand that the number has since reduced to seven.
The South-Eastern Health Board advise that the increase reflects the demand for medical services for older people in the Waterford area which has also resulted in an increased level of medical bed days in Waterford Regional Hospital. In light of these difficulties, the South-Eastern Health Board has set up a small pilot group, representative of medical-nursing-administrative staff involved in the provision of services to older people in Waterford to examine how best the services in acute hospital, rehabilitation units and long staff facilities might best be co-ordinated.
