Written answers
Wednesday, 12 November 2025
Department of Health
Hospital Waiting Lists
David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein)
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1087. To ask the Minister for Health the number of persons on waiting lists for cataract surgery at University Hospital Waterford, by time band, in tabular form. [61911/25]
Jennifer Carroll MacNeill (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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It is acknowledged that many patients are still waiting too long for hospital appointments and treatments. I am conscious of the burden that this places on patients and their families.
I published the Waiting List Action Plan (WLAP) for 2025 in February, representing this Government’s continued commitment to reducing waiting times for patients and improving access to hospital care.
With the multi annual action plan approach, we are progressing towards the ultimate vision of a public healthcare service in which everyone has timely access to high-quality scheduled care, where and when they need it.
My Department is engaging with the HSE and National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF) to develop the action plan for 2026, building on the progress delivered to date, renewing the focus on improving waiting times for patients, and considering the learnings from the challenges that arose in 2025.
In relation to the particular query raised, the NTPF has provided my Department with the information attached which shows the number of patients on the Waiting List for cataract surgery in University Hospital Waterford at the end of September 2025. The table provides a breakdown of the numbers waiting by time-band.
IPDC Cataracts Waiting List by Wait Time band for University Hospital Waterford end September 2025
| - | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Time Band | |||||
| Hospital | 0-6 Months | 6-12 Months | 12-18 Months | 18+ Months | Total |
| University Hospital Waterford | 426 | 193 | 96 | 116 | 831 |
David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein)
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1088. To ask the Minister for Health the number of persons on waiting lists for hernia surgery at University Hospital Waterford, by timeframe, in tabular form. [61912/25]
Jennifer Carroll MacNeill (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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It is acknowledged that many patients are still waiting too long for hospital appointments and treatments. I am conscious of the burden that this places on patients and their families.
I published the Waiting List Action Plan (WLAP) for 2025 in February, representing this Government’s continued commitment to reducing waiting times for patients and improving access to hospital care.
With the multi annual action plan approach, we are progressing towards the ultimate vision of a public healthcare service in which everyone has timely access to high-quality scheduled care, where and when they need it.
My Department is engaging with the HSE and NTPF to develop the action plan for 2026, building on the progress delivered to date, renewing the focus on improving waiting times for patients, and considering the learnings from the challenges that arose in 2025.
In relation to the particular query raised, the National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF) has provided my Department with the attached table which shows the number of patients on the Waiting List for a hernia procedure in University Hospital Waterford at the end of September 2025. The table provides a breakdown of the numbers waiting by the specific procedure and by time-band.
Patients on the Waiting List for a Hernia Procedure in University Hospital Waterford by time band at the end of September 2025 |
Time Band | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Procedure | 0-6 Months | 6-12 Months | 18+ Months | Small Vol Time Band | Total |
| Laparoscopic repair of inguinal hernia, unilateral | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Repair of inguinal hernia, unilateral | 19 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 30 |
| Repair of umbilical hernia | 12 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 17 |
| Small Vol Procedure | 0 | 7 | 0 | 11 | 18 |
| Total | 36 | 7 | 16 | 11 | 70 |
Note: The NTPF have applied Statistical Disclosure Control (SDC) techniques to the data above to preserve confidentiality and mitigate against identification or self-identification of individuals, this includes aggregating numbers under ‘Small Volume’ headings as appropriate. |
David Cullinane (Waterford, Sinn Fein)
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1089. To ask the Minister for Health the number of persons in receipt of pain management as they wait for procedures at University Hospital Waterford, by the specialty on procedural waiting lists, in tabular form. [61913/25]
Jennifer Carroll MacNeill (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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As this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly, as soon as possible.
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