Pressure on hospital waiting lists continues to intensify as the number of patients climbs further above one million.
The latest figures issued by the National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF) on Friday showed that 1,040,698 patients were on a waiting list of some kind at the end of September.
Of these, 114,722 patients were waiting for an appointment for their inpatient or day case treatment, 43,285 patients were waiting to receive an appointment for a GI (gastrointestinal) endoscopy, and 692,524 patients were waiting for a first hospital outpatient consultation.
Furthermore, 35,273 patients have been given a date for their inpatient, day case or endoscopy procedure, while 114,422 patients are recorded in the planned procedure category.
READ MORE
These are patients who have already had treatment, require further treatment and have been assigned indicative dates for treatment.
A total of 40,472 patients are classified as suspended, which includes patients who are temporarily unfit or unable to attend due to clinical, personal or social reasons.
The figure topped one million for the first time in June.
A statement by the Department of Health acknowledged some “positive signs”, including a continued reduction in the inpatient or day cases list since the end of July.
“However, recent waiting lists have been impacted by the ongoing trend of higher demand and increased referrals, which has offset the significantly increased levels of activity that are being delivered in acute hospitals,” ran the statement.
“Demand for scheduled, or planned, care has increased significantly in recent years, exceeding both pre-pandemic levels and demographic expectations.”
The department said while it aims to prevent waiting lists from growing, “higher levels of referrals can also indicate better access to necessary care, increased awareness of available services, and expanded service provision”.
Irish Patients’ Association chairman Stephen McMahon acknowledged the improvement in day cases, but said there has been “substantial increases in prolonged waits”.
September’s figures show that 64,718 patients were waiting 18 months or longer, while 86,482 were waiting between 12 and 18 months.
“The NTPF has confirmed that it does not collect the activity data needed to show how many waiting-list patients were actually treated or seen,” said McMahon.
“Without that information, the public cannot reconcile who joined the lists, who received care and who was removed without treatment.”
McMahon called on the Government to publish a “credible recovery plan”, stating patients need “clear evidence of sustained reductions across the waiting-list system”.
