Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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513. To ask the Minister for Health the number of persons in County Roscommon who are on an outpatient hospital waiting list; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [44702/18]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Reducing waiting times for access to hospital appointments and procedures is a key priority of Government.

In relation to the outpatient waiting list for Roscommon Hospital, waiting list data complied by the NTPF shows that at the end of September 2018 there were 2,906 patients waiting for a first appointment, with 52.9% waiting less than 9 months. More broadly within the hospital Group, Saolta are engaging in a number of initiatives to improve waiting times for outpatients, including the use of virtual clinics, new patient pathway systems such as the National Urology Pathway Pilot in Letterkenny, and regular waiting list validation.

In Budget 2019 the Government further increased investment in tackling waiting lists, with funding to the National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF) to increase from €55m in 2018 to €75m in 2019. The NTPF has committed to arrange deliver 40,000 Outpatient appointments, nationally, as part of its 2019 activity.