Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Page 53 of the programme for Government states efforts to increase access to safe, timely care as close as possible to patients' homes will be a priority. Unfortunately, this is not the reality for people waiting for cataract operations that greatly improve the quality of life for older people. I refer to the case of an 87 year old woman who has been classed as having an urgent need for a cataract operation. She was informed the waiting time for an urgent procedure was 11 months. The National Treatment Purchase Fund, NTPF, is not an option because she has not been waiting for the prescribed time. The solution offered by the Health Service Executive is to avail of the option of treatment under the cross-border directive and it sent her the relevant contact details. Is this its solution to the problem of waiting lists? If so, it is cold comfort to an 87 year old woman who needs a simple operation and cannot leave her home because she cannot see.

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