Billy Kelleher (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)
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To ask the Minister for Health if the waiting times on trollies in accident and emergency departments are based on average waiting times; if he will outline the waiting time actually calculated; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43527/12]

James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)
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The number of patients on trolleys is reported as the aggregate number of such patients, as counted by the INMO, at 8a.m. from Monday to Friday, excluding bank holidays. Separately, SDU collates the number of patients waiting 0-6 hours, 6-9 hours, 9-18 hours and over 18 hours, in order to allow detailed analysis of patient attendance and admittance patterns in Emergency Departments. These detailed figures are collected three times daily, 7 days per week, and shared with hospitals on an operational basis.

The waiting times are calculated from the time a decision to admit the patient is made in the ED to the time the patient is admitted to the hospital. This method of calculation has been used by the INMO since 2005. In line with SDU recommendations, hospitals are moving to measurement of Patient Experience Time (PET), which calculates waiting time from the time a patient registers in the Emergency Department.