Sign up to The Irish Times Archive (1859 - 2008)My Account »

IMAGINE HAVING to wait 18 months to see a specialist after you went to your GP with chest pain. Or having symptoms suggestive of cancer and waiting at least a year to see a consultant. Either scenario, were it to occur on a regular basis, would trigger a public outcry. For the three-quarters of a million people with a neurological condition, however, waiting 18 months to see a consultant and 10 months to have an MRI scan in order to secure a diagnosis is now the norm.

The situation reflects the relative neglect of neurology services in the Republic compared with the prioritisation achieved through national strategies for heart disease and cancer. While most neurological conditions are disabling and significantly life-altering, generally they are not immediately life-threatening. This may explain – although it does not excuse – the neglect of neurology by the Department of Health and the Health Service Executive (HSE).