Aindrias Moynihan (Cork North West, Fianna Fail)
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122. To ask the Minister for Health if he has used the National Treatment Purchase Fund since its introduction to make a reduction in the waiting times for persons to avail of gynaecological services in CUMH. [27863/17]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I acknowledge that waiting times are often unacceptably long and I am conscious of the burden that this places on patients and their families.

There is no doubt that our public hospital system is challenged in meeting the growing demand for care. Last year alone, there was a 2% increase in inpatient and day-case activity over 2015.

Reducing waiting times for the longest waiting patients is one of this Government's key priorities. Consequently, Budget 2017 allocated €20 million to the NTPF, rising to €55 million in 2018.

In order to reduce the numbers of long-waiting patients, I asked the HSE to develop Waiting List Action Plans for 2017 in the areas of Inpatient/Daycase, Scoliosis and Outpatient Services. The Inpatient / Daycase and Outpatient Plans which have now been published and currently being implemented, focus on reducing the number of patients waiting 15 months or more for inpatient and daycase treatment or outpatient appointment as much as possible within existing resources by the end of October. The Scoliosis Action Plan aims to ensure that no patient who requires scoliosis surgery will be waiting more than four months for surgery by the end of 2017. Under these Plans, since early February, over 14,200 patients have come off the Inpatient/Daycase Waiting List and nearly 49,000 patients have come off the Outpatient Waiting List.

The Inpatient Daycase Waiting List Action Plan makes specific reference to a targeted initiative to address long-waiting Gynaecology patients in the South/South West Hospital Group to be supported through the funding allocated to the NTPF.