39,000 on Galway hospital waiting lists

MORE than 39,000 outpatients are waiting for surgical treatment in two Galway public hospitals, according to shocking new official figures.

The disclosure that 39,182 outpatients and 7,057 inpatients are on waiting lists for services in University College Hospital, Galway and Merlin Park Hospital, Galway has prompted renewed criticism of the “privatisation” of the public health service by stealth over the last decade.
However, the Health Service Executive  (HSE) insists these figures may be overstating the real extent of the waiting list, as they need to be “validated” to remove people who may have been referred for the same elective procedure to different hospitals.
Last year, University College Hospital, Galway was the only hospital in Ireland not to meet the Health Minister’s target of completing operations within 12 months, despite intensive efforts by all the staff.
Councillor Catherine Connolly, who requested an official breakdown of public waiting lists at a recent HSE West Forum meeting, accused successive governments of “running down” health services through privatisation and lack of proper investment in acute hospital services.
Apart from a few specialities, Councillor Connolly claimed the numbers of patients on waiting lists in Galway public hospitals has increased, while the HSE also faces the prospect of a penalty of up to €25,000 if specific targets are not met by the end of the year.
The highest numbers of outpatients on the waiting list are in the orthopaedics sector (7,205), followed by ear, nose and throat (5,525), urology (3,867), plastics (3,103), surgery (2,818) and dermatology (2,616).
Of the 7,057 on the inpatient waiting list, 997 are in ophthalmology, while 838 are waiting for urology.
HSE West Forum members were also told that 23 beds and two theatres are closed in UHG and another 32 beds on the hospital grounds and one theatre were closed in recent times in Merlin Park, in addition to bed and theatres closures in recent years.
Regional director of operations, John Hennessy pointed out the outpatient list was not validated, as patients could be on different lists for the same procedure two or three times.
However, Mr Hennessy acknowledged the underlying trend for outpatient waiting lists is too high and the HSE regards it as a major priority to reduce these figures significantly. He noted in-patient waiting lists are also being prioritised to ensure all elective surgery is delivered by public hospitals within the required nine-month period to avoid penalties and the prospect of having this care delivered in a private hospital.
Galway Primary, Community and Continuing Care (PCCC) health manager, Tony Canavan recalled over 217,000 patients were treated in UHG last year and noted some patients were referred by their GP to a number of different hospitals for treatment.
New chief executive officer for Galway Roscommon Hospitals’ Group, Bill Maher stated the group does not wish to repeat last year’s performance and aims to deliver the nine-month targets ahead of time this year. The hospitals’ group have implemented a five-point plan to ensure targets are met, including a pledge to treat 7,500 patients on their Primary Target List before the end of September.
This plan includes increased focus on validation to achieve accurate waiting lists; improved reporting and ownership; effective use of all resources across all group hospitals; patient education and engagement and effective utilisation of scarce theatre space.
Mr Maher stated there is now clear and consistent communication with all specialities on a weekly and monthly basis, highlighting areas that are at risk of not reaching targets.
Plans are in progress to fully utilise all capacity across the Galway Roscommon Group of Hospitals to ensure patients can be treated in a timely manner, while informing patients and GPs about their treatment policies is regarded as the key to the success of their plans.
Mr Maher pointed out clinical directors, general managers and speciality leads are working on plans to increase elective activity to deliver waiting lists in all hospitals.
“The waiting list for inpatient and daycare procedures are reducing by about 4% every week as a result of clinical and administrative management and the support of the group management team,” he said.