John Brady (Wicklow, Sinn Fein)
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123. To ask the Minister for Health the status of the introduction of the integrated hospital waiting list management system, Comhlista. [27656/17]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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This Government is committed to reducing waiting times for patients, and I am keenly aware that waiting times are often unacceptably long and this places a significant burden on patients and their families.

In order to reduce this burden for patients and to ensure that best practice is applied in how waiting lists are managed, I am open to evaluating new approaches to waiting list management in our health service. I agree that greater integration of hospital waiting list management systems is a step in the right direction and IT can play a significant role in underpinning these integrated approaches.

On this basis, on 15th February during a Private Members Business debate in the Seanad regarding waiting lists and Comhliosta, I committed to asking the NTPF to establish and lead a project team of relevant experts and stakeholders to examine the feasibility of progressing to a more integrated approach to waiting list management at Hospital Group level.

Over the last few months the NTPF has been scoping out the structure and format of this study. The first meeting of the steering group took place last week and a workshop will follow later this month. I have asked the NTPF to report to me by the end of August and I will examine their recommendations once the study has been finalised.

Niamh Smyth (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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124. To ask the Minister for Health if he will address hospital waiting times for persons in counties Cavan and Monaghan waiting on cataract procedures; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29062/17]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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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. These plans have been published and their implementation is ongoing. The Inpatient / Daycase and Outpatient Plans focus on reducing the number of patients waiting 15 months or more for inpatient and daycase treatment or for an outpatient appointment 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 and 130 scoliosis surgeries have taken place.

In addition, the NTPF is currently rolling out its Daycase Waiting List Initiative focused on those waiting longest for daycase treatment, with a view to ensuring that in excess of 2,000 patients waiting more than 18 months for a daycase procedure will have received an offer of an appointment for their procedure by the end of June.The NTPF has advised that to date over 2500 patients files have been transferred to private hospitals under this Initiative, 631 patients have accepted an offer of treatment in a private hospital and that 178 patients have received their procedure.

The inpatient/daycase Waiting List Aciton Plan will be delivered through a combination of normal hospital, National Service Plan-funded activity, as well as insourcing and outsourcing initiatives using the €15m of Budget 2017. Under insourcing, initiatives to address orthopaedic and ophthalmology waiting lists will be progressed.