John Crown (Independent) | Oireachtas source

Yes. The special delivery unit is dear to the Minister's heart. It has sent instructions to outpatient clinics around the country, including dermatology departments, where traditionally we have absurd waiting lists of up to a year. It is much more than a year in some parts of the country, particularly outside Dublin. However, the SDU has told staff in outpatient scheduling divisions to no longer notify patients who have been on a waiting list for more than six months what the date of their appointment will be. Instead, they are to write a letter noting that the patient is seeking an appointment and stating that closer to the date he or she will be given a date for the appointment. The net effect of this is that people are in an amorphous area until a few months before the appointment, which is perhaps a year hence-----