‘Patients in danger if they delay treatment over Covid’
HUNDREDS of heart attack patients have delayed seeking care during the pandemic which could lead to ‘life-threatening’ issues down the line, a leading heart consultant has warned.
Figures from the National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTFP), for the end of June, show a dramatic decline in the number of heart attack patients attending appointments, despite restrictions easing at that point.
There were almost 700 fewer patients waiting up to three months for a cardiac inpatient or day-case appointment compared to the same month last year.
According to figures from the NTPF, as of the end of June, 1,236 people were waiting up to three months for an appointment. There was also a drop of 300,000 outpatient appointments in Ireland between March and April this year, during lockdown, compared to 2019.
The drop in patients on the waiting list has triggered alarm, with a leading heart consultant warning they could be gambling with their lives.
Director of Cardiology at the Mater Private Professor Robert Byrne said that this decline suggests that thousands of patients have postponed seeking care during the pandemic which could lead to potentially life-threatening issues down the road.
‘The correlation between the reduced numbers and the peak of the pandemic in Ireland suggests that Covid fears might be causing patients to avoid GPs,’ said Prof. Byrne.
‘It is crucial that patients present to a medical professional if they have any potential cardiac symptoms… For many people, cardiovascular disease is not diagnosed until they have a heart attack, angina, stroke, or heart failure, so it is important that we raise awareness.’
In Ireland, approximately 10,000 people die from cardiovascular disease every year. Statistics show that Irish men and women have the highest rate of death before the age of 65 from coronary heart disease in Europe.
Prof. Byrne added that people deferring check-ups for heart disease may lead to a ‘lasting legacy of heart disease long after the pandemic has passed’.
As of the end of July, there were 4,053 people waiting on an inpatient or day-case cardiology appointment with 122 waiting 18 months or more. The biggest backlog in this area is in ‘general surgery’ where 12,964 people are waiting on appointments followed by orthopaedics with 10,761 waiting.
According to the Irish Hospital Consultants Association (IHCA), the number of new and returning people waiting on outpatient appointments dropped from 869,581 last year to 567,416 this year.
The IHCA has said that the reduction in non-emergency and non-Covid-19 care in acute hospitals over recent months has resulted in a hidden increase in the number of people who delayed seeking care.
It added that the numbers needing hospital care are not fully reflected in the figures as these cases will not yet have been placed on waiting lists.
‘Crucial that patients go to a GP’