A Kerry councillor says it's good news to hear of moves to deal with the large numbers on outpatient waiting lists at University Hospital Kerry.
National Treatment Purchase Fund figures for the end of August show there are 11,715 people waiting for outpatient appointments at UHK, up 1,668 in the past year.
Kerry Cllr Mikey Sheehy raised the matter at the recent HSE South Regional Health Forum.
In response to Fianna Fáil Cllr Mikey Sheehy’s questions, the South / South West Hospital Group, which covers University Hospital Kerry, says the HSE’s winter plan aims to maintain elective surgeries.
The hospital group says it’s working with private hospitals on this, and adds that this builds on the work undertaken with private hospitals during the COVID-19 lockdown.
Last year, the group arranged for 10,500 patients to be seen in either internal extra clinics or by private providers, with the National Treatment Purchase Fund prioritising patients with long wait times.
Cllr Mikey Sheehy, who’s a member of the HSE South Regional Health Forum, says he welcomes plans to tackle outpatient waiting lists at UHK, but had wanted more details.
He says while we have to live with COVID-19, cancer patients can’t become collateral damage, and people needing orthopaedic procedures, whose mobility has been greatly impacted, can’t be left waiting.
He welcomes outpatients’ services being taken out of UHK and into primary care settings and the private sector, as well as the appointment of more staff.
