The latest waiting list figures show that more than 2,000 children are waiting over a year to see a heart specialist, described by Galway East TD Anne Rabbitte as a ‘damning indictment’ of Minister Simon Harris’ record in office.
2,069 children are waiting over a year to see a heart specialist and more than half of them are waiting over 18 months, the latest waiting list figures showed.
The waiting list for ophthalmology is even longer – 2,277 are waiting to see an eye specialist for more than a year.
Deputy Rabbitte said that it is shocking that children are waiting so long.
“Overall, an analysis of latest waiting list figures reveals a total of 54,789 children waiting for an appointment – 17,639 of them for more than a year and 10,541 for over 18 months.
“It’s genuinely shocking that children are waiting so long just to have an outpatient consultation,” the Galway TD said.
She added that there appears to be ‘no sense of urgency in addressing this issue’ despite the waiting lists continuously lengthening .
“You would think a twelvefold increase in the space of two years would generate an increase in activity, but Fine Gael seems content to allow waiting lists for both adults and children.
“The long promised 2018 Outpatient Action Plan has still not been published and we’re more than half way through the year. These lengthy lists are having a detrimental impact on children. It’s a scandalous situation and cannot be tolerated any longer,” added Deputy Rabbitte.
