The Irish Mail on Sunday

It’s scandalous, I’d gone blind and had to get bus to Belfast

- By Claire Scott claire.scott@mailonsund­ay.ie

AN elderly woman who has gone blind in one eye while waiting for cataract surgery has branded the delay in getting treatment ‘scandalous’.

Mary O’Sullivan, 80, from Bantry in Co. Cork, was forced to travel to Belfast for treatment on Friday. She developed cataracts in her right eye over three years ago. Mary said: ‘I’ve lost my sight completely in this eye because of the waiting.’

Mary’s daughter Breda Fitzgerald was taking the journey to Belfast with her and said the last three years watching her mum lose her sight has been a terrible experience.

Breda said: ‘It’s ridiculous, it’s a joke to have to travel when you should be able to get the care here. Having these elderly people take this journey is crazy. The system is scandalous.’

Mary and Breda’s criticism follows a report from the Associatio­n of Optometris­ts Ireland (AOI) last week revealing the average waiting time to be seen for cataract surgery in Ireland is 28 months – with many in Cork and Kerry waiting five years or more.

Due to the dire delay, two politician­s have been organising buses for elderly people in Cork and Kerry to travel to Belfast for eye surgery since last year.

Independen­t TD Michael Collins, from West Cork, and Independen­t TD Danny HealyRae, from Kerry, have organised for a bus to transport 16 people from both counties twice a month to Belfast’s Kingsbridg­e Hospital, in order to take advantage of the HSE’s treatment abroad scheme.

The entire trip, including surgery, costs €2,200 which can then be refunded by the HSE under the scheme, bar the €50 per person for the private bus.

On Friday morning, Tralee couple Pat Walsh, 65, and his wife, Angela, 66, also boarded the bus for their second trip.

Pat developed cataracts in both eyes earlier this year. Pat said: ‘My sight went for me after Christmas and I went to see an eye doctor in Tralee. I was told that if I were to go through the system here, I’d be waiting almost 18 months to be called to be assessed, then four to five years waiting to be called for surgery and my sight would be gone by then.’

Joseph O’Shea, in his 70s from north Kerry, said he’s been waiting four years to be seen since he initially developed cataracts and he has also lost sight in one of his eyes. He said: ‘I feel really annoyed. I have brittle bone syndrome. I break bones all time and now that I can’t see I’m afraid I could just fall and break my neck.’

TD Mr Collins said: ‘What we really need is a local solution. There’s an opportunit­y for the Government to bring surgeons to theatres of excellence we have in Bantry and Mallow on a Sunday and fund that and have the operations go ahead there.’

According to the AOI survey, the shortest delays for surgery are in Sligo and Leitrim where the average wait is 15 months.

In contrast the average wait for private cataract surgery across Ireland is three months.

A HSE spokesman said: ‘The HSE and National Treatment Purchase Fund are working collaborat­ively with all hospital groups to identify solutions.’

‘I’m afraid I could just fall and break my neck’

 ??  ?? TREATMENT: Mary O’Sullivan, 80, who has lost sight in one of her eyes, with her daughter Breda Fitzgerald ahead of their bus trip to Belfast
TREATMENT: Mary O’Sullivan, 80, who has lost sight in one of her eyes, with her daughter Breda Fitzgerald ahead of their bus trip to Belfast

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