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79,000 added to waiting lists since start of 2020, as 844,719 patients now wait for care; 612,817 outpatients are waiting for a consultant appointment, an increase of over 235,000 compared with 2014 and 59,383 during 2020; Direct correlation between record number of people waiting for outpatient appointments and long-standing hospital consultant vacancies. Increased wait times adversely impact patient outcomes in key areas of care;  Over 18,000 patients now waiting over a year for essential inpatient/day case treatment – more than double the number at the start of 2020. IHCA President Professor Alan Irvine: “Key to bringing down wait times continues to be more consultants and hospital capacity to care for patients.”

Commenting on the fact that 843,363 people are now waiting for care, Prof Alan Irvine, President, Irish Hospital Consultants Association, said: 

Latest rise in patient waiting times comes the same day NPHET warns of the high likelihood of insufficient staffing levels to respond to service demands. 9,634 added to public outpatient waiting list in August, as 841,459 now on various NTPF waiting lists; 9.5% increase in the number of those waiting for care since the beginning of 2020;  Consultants warn that promise of ‘winter plan’ is an inadequate response and that immediate funded plan to tackle capacity deficits is needed;  New IHCA President elected at critical time for hospital consultants as health system braces for ‘winter like no other’.  IHCA President Professor Alan Irvine: “We still do not have a winter plan and it remains unclear what increased public hospital capacity will be provided…If significantly increased capacity is not urgently provided to prepare for the extraordinary winter surge due to COVID-19 and other demand increases, then it will simply be too late.”

Over 300,000 fewer outpatient appointments in March, April and May 2020 compared with 2019 means thousands of patients have postponed seeking care and referrals to hospitals for appointment;  Hidden increase in waiting lists due to reduction of non-emergency and non-COVID-19 care in acute hospitals during pandemic;  Number of inpatients treated decreased by around 43,000 and day case procedures fell by almost 128,000 over same period compared with last year;  816,716 people are now waiting on some form of NTPF waiting list, an increase of 47,952 since the start of 2020.  The Irish Hospital Consultants Association (IHCA) has today, Friday, 10 July 2020 warned that the number of people who need acute hospital care could be greater than reported. 

9,137 added to public outpatient and inpatient/day case waiting lists in May, as 808,447 now on some form of NTPF waiting list; Around 1 in 5 of the Irish population find themselves waiting for public hospital care;  Programme for Government must include clear financial commitments to open additional beds and fill hospital consultant posts to tackle the waiting list backlog and plan for continued delivery of care in a COVID-19 environment. IHCA President Dr Donal O’Hanlon: “COVID-19 presents major challenges for the provision of timely care in our acute public hospitals and acute mental health units. The Government and the health service management must engage with the IHCA and its hospital consultants to develop realistic, practical plans to provide public hospital care in the coming months and agree on how best we can meet the challenges ahead.”

13,231 added to public outpatient and inpatient/day case waiting lists in April, as 796,603 now on some form of NTPF waiting list; Delays in providing care to non-COVID patients of private and public hospitals and cancellation of surgeries during COVID-19 crisis will increase waiting lists further; Urgent implementation of the 2018 National Development Plan and Capacity Review recommendations to put in place an additional 2,600 acute hospital beds and 4,500 community care beds is now more important than ever and needs to be funded without delay.   The Irish Hospital Consultants Association (IHCA) has, today, (Saturday, 16 May 2020), renewed its call for the urgent implementation of the 2018 National Development Plan (NDP) and Capacity Review recommendations to put in place an additional 2,600 acute hospital beds and 4,500 community care beds across our health service. 

Election 2020 can call Government to account for why it is failing to make any significant inroads reducing the one million waiting for hospital care  In Scotland, with a comparable population, there are over 50% more consultants and 70% of all patients are treated within 12 weeks.  IHCA President, Dr. Donal O’Hanlon: “In Ireland our existing HSE waiting time targets are in a ‘parallel universe’ compared to countries such as Scotland, which has a similar population. There, Scottish hospitals see most outpatients within 12 weeks. Here, the target for an outpatient to see a consultant is four times longer at 52 weeks. Yet our health service cannot even meet this target.

117,000 children nationally now waiting for hospital care.  Hospital consultants call for data on the number of children waiting to be published, separate from adult figures. IHCA President Dr. Donal O’Hanlon: “That over 15,000 children, equivalent to the entire population of Castlebar, are waiting for hospital care across the Saolta University Health Care Group’s acute public hospitals, is hugely worrying. “The fact that this information is not published on a regular basis does not make the agonising wait for children and their families any less real or less damaging for the children whose healthy development is on hold”. The Irish Hospital Consultants Association (IHCA) has today (6 December 2019) called for “full transparency” on the numbers of children waiting to access treatment in the Saolta University Health Care Group’s public hospitals in Galway, Roscommon, Mayo, Sligo and Donegal.

117,000 children nationally now waiting for hospital care. Hospital consultants call for data on the number of children waiting to be published, separate from adult figures. IHCA President Dr. Donal O’Hanlon: “That over 6,600 children, equivalent to the entire population of Limerick’s Corbally, are waiting for hospital care across the University of Limerick Hospital Group’s acute public hospitals, is hugely worrying. “The fact that this information is not published on a regular basis does not make the agonising wait for children and their families any less real or less damaging for the children whose healthy development is on hold”. The Irish Hospital Consultants Association (IHCA) has today (6 December 2019) called for “full transparency” on the numbers of children waiting to access treatment in the University of Limerick Hospital Group’s public hospitals.