13 March 2023

2023 waiting list action plan falls short

The Department of Health has published its 2023 waiting list action plan, following similar plans for 2021 and 2022.

Despite some progress in 2022, at the end of December 2022, there were almost 700,000 people on active waiting lists for acute scheduled care. The government estimates that by December 2023, that figure will be nearly double. Therefore, the Minister for Health has announced various measures to tackle the increase, including:

• Additional activity within the private and public system
• Developing five surgical hubs nationally
• Additional community activity to reduce waiting lists for high priority services, mainly for children
• Modernising patient care pathways to reform access to acute scheduled care
• Establishing patient-centred booking arrangements through a central referrals office
• Developing waiting list management protocols
• Developing Information and Communications Technology (ICT) infrastructure.

Dan Hodgson, FODO Ireland's head of policy and public affairs, said: "The government has missed a trick by not making greater use of local optometry to assist with the long waiting lists for eye care.

"FODO Ireland has called on the HSE and Minister for Health to increase access to local optometry, particularly for children, to help reduce patient waiting times.

"We have a highly skilled and trained workforce, with the equipment and facilities to see patients sooner - reducing pressure in hospitals, the number of people on a waiting list, and the amount of time they must wait."