Action called on long waiting lists at TUH

TALLAGHT University Hospital (TUH) has made “a concerted effort to address the length of time patients are waiting for access to scheduled care”, according to a HSE spokesperson.

The issue of waiting lists for scheduled services in TUH was raised by Fianna Fáil councillor Charlie O’Connor at a meeting of the Mid-Leinster Regional Health Forum on Tuesday.

Cllr O’Connor called for “action on the long waiting lists at Tallaght University Hospital” and also requested details and assurances from the HSE in relation to the waiting lists.

In response, Trevor O’Callaghan from the HSE said that over the course of the pandemic scheduled care was provided on an “urgent time-sensitive basis only” which caused “some growth” in the waiting times for scheduled care.

Outlining the work TUH has done to address the issue, Mr O’Callaghan said there has been a reduction of 80 per cent of day case surgery patients waiting over 12 months since the start of 2021.

He added that inpatient waiting lists have reduced by five per cent since the start of 2021, while endoscopy waiting lists have reduced by 32 per cent within the same time frame.

Mr O’Callaghan concluded his response by noting that OPD patients waiting longer than 15 months has reduced by 18.5 per cent since the start of 2021.