Almost 3,500 people are waiting for an Orthopaedic consultation at Letterkenny University Hospital, new figures show.
A shocking 1,119 of those patients have been waiting more than one year for their first appointment, with 647 in this cohort waiting more than 18 months.
A further 685 patients are on the waiting list for orthopaedic procedures.
The figures for Letterkenny University Hospital were released to Cllr Gerry Crawford at yesterday’s meeting of the Regional Health Forum.
Orthopaedic waiting lists remain one of the highest in the country, representatives were told, and the high figures are not unique to Letterkenny.
In its response, the Saolta University Health Care Group said that Letterkenny University Hospital continues to work with the National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF) to offer patients earlier appointments through outsourcing. NTPF full package of care is been offered to those awaiting initial consultation in Orthopaedics, in chronological order, with 597 offers issued year to date and 310 patients accepting. NTPF are also offering outsourcing for a number of Orthopaedic procedures with 182 offers issued year to date and 129 patients accepted.
