Call for regular updates of waiting times for out-patient appointments

THE GOVERNMENT should consider publishing on a routine basis the waiting times for out-patient appointments for each hospital consultant in the public health system, the Minister of State at the Department of Health Róisín Shortall has urged.

In a letter sent to the Minister for Health James Reilly she argued that there was “strong public merit” in such an approach.

Ms Shortall maintained that the publication of such information on a “live or routine basis” would reduce costs, lead to better management of long waiting times and result in improved accountability.

She said many patients opted for private hospital care because they assumed that the public waiting time would be lengthy or that there would be a better service provided.

“This is not necessarily the case. If such information was available to patients, they would be in a better position to judge. And if the information was available to health insurers, they would be in a better position to reduce their costs by advising patients of what is available in the public system.”

Ms Shortall also said that at present GPs referring their patients for a given procedure had no easily accessible up-to-date information on waiting times in public hospitals.

“They refer on the basis of routine, on the basis of the most proximate service and/or on the basis of recent experience. If waiting times were more readily accessible by GPs, their patients and health insurers [for instance through a website] one would expect referral trends to change.

“This would produce a more even spread of waiting lists and waiting times, at least within regions.”

Ms Shortall also argued that the publication of waiting time data would lead to “far better accountability for work undertaken by hospital consultants”.

“The public and health authorities would be in a far better position to make a judgment on value for money. The public would also have far better information on the merits of paying for a consultant now for a procedure that they might well receive in a few weeks or months as a public patient.”