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2,300 Donegal patients wait a year
for treatment
25.09.14
INISHOWEN T.D., Charlie
McConalogue has accused the Government of allowing
hospital waiting lists to "spiral out of control".
He was responding to the latest figures from the
National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF) which reveal
massive increases in waiting lists across the
country, including Letterkenny General Hospital.
At the end of July there were over 2,300 people
waiting more than a year for an appointment at
Letterkenny – that’s a huge 209 per cent increase
since January. |
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Donegal North East TD, Charlie
McConalogue. |
“The figures highlight
the Government’s failure in tackling the crisis in
our health service. Despite a series of promises and
announcements that waiting lists are reducing, the
statistics from the NTPF reveal the real story,"
said the Fianna Fáil deputy.
"Not only is the number of people on the waiting
lists increasing, the waiting times themselves are
also on the rise. In the first seven months of the
year, the number of people waiting more than six
months for an outpatient appointment at Letterkenny
General Hospital hit 13,000 – an increase of almost
2,000. During the same period, the number of
patients on a waiting list for over a year soared by
over 200% to 2,333."
He said he was "extremely concerned" the situation
will deteriorate further as the cuts to the health
service begin to filter through.
He said €200m is being slashed from hospital budgets
this year "which will force additional service
cutbacks in an already pressurised system". |
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