Our waiting lists are just a sick joke

THE appalling figure of nearly threequarters of a million on hospital waiting lists is yet another example of our health service’s abysmal mismanagement.

The statistics from the National Treatment Purchase Fund show there were 700,830 people facing delays in April.

Galway University Hospital had the biggest inpatient, day case and outpatient waiting lists with close to 50,000 trying to get treatment.

The shocking stats show an increase of more than 3,000 on March.

Patients are waiting on a range of treatments from inpatient services to day treatments and mental health appointments.

And pyschiatric services seem particularly strained, with children hit hardest.

Thousands of youngsters are now waiting on appointments, some for more than a year.

The figures for March show 386 kids are waiting longer than 12 months for a Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service appointment, a 10% surge on February. Mental health services are at crisis point. In nearly all cases the longer these ailments are left untreated the worse they become.

These dire waiting times are leaving people untreated and suffering for far longer than necessary.

In 21st century Ireland more must be done by health bosses to provide vital services in a timely manner.