Waiting list letters being sent to people who have already died, Cllr claims

IN some cases, letters are being sent to people who have already died asking them if they wish to remain on Inpatient or Outpatient waiting lists.

That’s according to a Sligo councillor who has questioned the number of hours being spent sending out the letters and the administrative cost of those letters.

Cllr Donal Gilroy says his calculations based on the information he has received show that the HSE and the SAOLTA University Hospital Care Group in the northwest are spending an estimated €239,000 per annum confirming hospital Inpatient and Outpatient waiting lists with patients.

Via the Regional Health Forum of which he is a member, Cllr Gilroy sought official figures for the number of hours spent by each hospital in the region who send out letters.

In some cases, letters, he said, are being sent to people who have died.

Based on figures from the SAOLTA group on the number of hours per week spent by staff at various hospitals in the region on validating waiting lists, Cllr Donal Gilroy said the total figure is 230 hours per week.

Working on an average payment of €20 per hour paid to HSE staff for this work, the total cost is €239,000 per year, he said.

Cllr Gilroy said he was now “hearing stories” that some of the patients written to have in fact passed away by the time the letters are issued to them, and their names are then taken off the lists.

Sean and Ciara Flannery at the St Patrick’s GAA Club dinner and dance and adult medal presentation night at the Sligo Park Hotel last Saturday. More photos on pages 12 & 13.