Colette Kelleher (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I call for a debate with the Minister for Health on gynaecology services. The lack of gynaecology services, particularly in Cork, has moved beyond unacceptable to dangerous. This is not an ordinary crack in a broken system. Women in Cork are being made wait drastically longer than women elsewhere in Ireland. It is a crisis on the boil which is having a devastating effect on women and their families.

There are 4,193 women waiting for an outpatient gynaecology appointment in Cork. This is the longest waiting list of all gynaecology units nationwide and is increasing by 1,000 patients year on year. The waiting list in Cork is twice as long as that of the Rotunda Hospital, which ranks second in the country. One in three women will wait over a year for an outpatient appointment, with many waiting two to three years. Many women arrive in accident and emergency departments in crisis as their conditions deteriorate due to long waiting lists.

There is a significant impact on these women's quality of life. Many of them suffer chronic pain, bleeding and menstrual disorders as they get sicker without treatment. There is a risk of delayed cancer diagnoses among women who have to wait years for outpatient assessment. There is a personal economic impact regarding income lost due to people having to take time off work, and a loss to society when people are not able to go to work.Cork University Maternity Hospital, CUMH, also has the largest waiting list in the country for gynaecology surgeries. Some 557 women are currently on the waiting list for surgery. More than one in three of these women, 38%, have been waiting for at least one year to have their planned surgery performed. Gynaecology theatres in CUMH are functioning at just 40% of their originally intended capacity. The hospital has two fully commissioned state-of-the-art gynaecology theatres and only one is currently available for gynaecology surgery. It is working only four days per week. No new consultant gynaecologist posts have been created in Cork in the past decade. This is despite 26 such posts having been advertised nationwide. As reported in yesterday's Irish Examiner, these are issues of national importance, and they deserve to be debated in the House. I urge the Leader to invite the Minister for a debate to answer on how this life-and-death matter for women in Cork and surrounding areas is to be addressed.