Seán Crowe (Dublin South West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

That would be worth pursuing. We all accept that the current system is not working. It is refreshing that the witnesses have come in today, and to hear then talk about figures coming down.

The example was given of Johnny and his wife. We all know someone who fits into that category. Deputy Gino Kenny spoke about one of his constituents. I remember dealing with a man who was a carer. He would not have been as old as Johnny in the example given in the slide presentation, who was 77. The man with whom I dealt was caring for his wife. He could only see shadows. He ended up going for an appointment through what, I presume, was the triage system. This was not in Dr. Rogers' area I might add. The man was basically asked the question of how he got to the appointment. He said he got a bus and then had to walk from the bus stop to the clinic. That seemed to be it. He was told then to come back in 12 months. He was devastated after this. We spoke in terms of the pathways. He thought this would be a pathway for him to get treatment. He eventually got it but that period of losing his sight, particularly with the added pressure of being the carer, put huge pressure on that family. Again, that is just an example; there are others. I could probably give the example of younger people I know as well and the challenge of getting to see a consultant while slowly going blind.

Are there eye conditions whereby if a person is not seen within a particular timescale, there is no going back, and that person's eyesight is going to go? How rare are those conditions? It is a broad question, but I think it is relevant to the waiting list. We got clear figures from the witnesses. Deputy Cullinane has other figures. There is no doubt there are people around the country. It is out of desperation that people travel to the North or wherever else in order to try to get treatment. As has been said, it is ironic that people are coming in the opposite direction. Again, we do not hear of the busloads of people travelling. At least, I have not heard of them doing so. Hopefully, it did not happen that busloads were coming from the North during Covid-19. I suppose it is selling hope. The fact that a person cannot see, or sees shadows, transforms his or her life. It is a huge plus for people's lives that they can get this treatment. On that point, are there conditions on which the witnesses could refresh the committee's knowledge?