Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Tuesday, 8 May 2001

Vol. 535 No. 4

Written Answers - Hospital Waiting Lists.

Róisín Shortall

Ceist:

169 Ms Shortall asked the Minister for Health and Children if his attention has been drawn to the continuing lengthy delays for hip replacements in the Eastern Regional Health Authority area; if he has sought any explanation from the board as to the cause of the delay; if his Department will investigate the reason a person (details supplied) in County Wicklow has had to wait over a year for his operation; and if he will ensure that he is seen to as a matter of urgency. [13019/01]

Minister for Health and Children (Mr. Martin)

Responsibility for the provision of hospital services to residents of Dublin, Kildare and Wicklow rests with the Eastern Regional Health Authority – ERHA. I have, therefore, asked the regional chief executive of the authority to investigate the matters raised and to respond to the Deputy directly.

Addressing the problem of long waiting lists has been a priority matter for the Government and my Department in recent years. Significant increased investment in tackling this problem has contained and improved the situation at national level. However, I am concerned by the lengthy delays which are still being experienced by people awaiting orthopaedic treatment, including those who are awaiting a hip replacement in the eastern region. The issues involved in waiting lists are many and complex and bed shortage is an aspect of the problem.

In this regard the Deputy will be aware that I initiated a national review of bed capacity in both the acute and non-acute sectors, on foot of the commitment by Government in the Programme for Prosperity and Fairness. This review involves the development of a long-term investment strategy for the acute and non-acute sectors and will include a detailed assessment of future bed requirements in response to increasing demand and changing demographics. The review will be completed shortly and will inform future policy discussions with regard to the development of acute hospital services and future strategies relating to such issues as waiting lists. The national review will also be informed by a recent ERHA needs assessment which identified a requirement for over 1,200 additional acute beds by 2011 to meet increasing service pressures in the region.

Finally, I should point out that under the National Development Plan 2000-2006 the Government is committed to investing £1 billion for the development of acute hospital services. I am satisfied that this investment will improve the capacity of the acute hospital sector to respond to increased demand for services over this period.