Woman travelled to Romania for surgery because of long wait here
A YOUNG woman who suffered from endometriosis said she had to travel to Romania and pay €10,000 for private surgery there because the huge waiting list here made her feel suicidal.
The chronic condition – which impacts an estimated one in 10 women in the country – is a progressive, inflammatory disease which causes the spread of tissues similar to uterus lining to grow elsewhere in the body, affecting other organs.
It can be difficult to diagnose, which can lead to a delay in patients receiving the support and care that they need. According to the Endometriosis Association of Ireland, patients have reported a diagnostic delay in Ireland of an average of 10 years.
Sarah Smith, 28, said she experienced problems from when she got her first period at 14, but was initially dismissed by doctors.
She told the Irish Mail on Sunday: ‘They wouldn’t go near me at all because I was a teenager; they wouldn’t even give me a smear test. They just put me on the pill and they were like, “come back when you’re 21.”’
When she was 21, Sarah had a laparoscopy, which finally confirmed her endometriosis diagnosis after seven years of suffering with symptoms.
In 2021, the Co. Meath women had another surgery and was diagnosed with stage four endometriosis. She was told she needed laparoscopic surgery with bowel resection, and was then referred to Tallaght University Hospital.
Sarah said she waited around two years for treatment in Ireland before researching options elsewhere in Europe.
After finding herself still on a waiting list this year, she felt she had no option but to go abroad for surgery earlier this year.
The Bucharest Endometriosis Centre in the Romanian capital was able to offer her surgery in less than three months.
She said of her experience: ‘In
Romania, because you’re paying for it, you’re treated like royalty.
‘They really looked after me and I had three different surgeons to message and call. Compared to Ireland, it was just completely different.’
The surgery cost €8,500 and with a consultation, MRI, flights and accommodation, Ms Smith spent around €10,000 in total.
She has applied for the Cross Border Directive scheme to cover the costs, but said this will only amount to €6,000.
‘I’m out of pocket a good bit,’ she said.
To add to her ordeal, Ms Smith said the delay in getting surgery made her condition worse.
She told the MoS: ‘They [the clinic in Romania] said that the endometriosis I have on my bowel, if I was seen two and a half years ago, it wouldn’t be as bad as it was.
‘They had to remove a foot off my bowel and I could’ve ended up with a stoma [colostomy] bag, but they said if it was treated at the time, it wouldn’t have been half as bad as it was.’
Tallaght University Hospital and the HSE both said they cannot comment on individual cases.