More than 85,000 people awaiting treatment at Cork hospitals, data shows 

More than 85,000 people were awaiting treatment at Cork hospitals last month, a 2% increase from the previous month, data from the National Treatment Purchase Fund has shown.

A total of 76,550 adults and 9,184 children were on hospital waiting lists in July, up slightly from 74,956 adults and 9,085 children in June.

Almost half of the total, (40,228 people), were waiting for treatment in South Infirmary Victoria University Hospital (SIVUH), while 29,219 were awaiting treatment in Cork University Hospital (CUH).

There were also 7,381 on waiting lists for Mercy University Hospital, 4,126 for Mallow General Hospital, 3,518 for Cork University Maternity Hospital (CUMH), and 1,262 for Bantry General Hospital.

The majority of children were waiting to be seen at CUH, where there were 5,384 people under 18 on waiting lists, followed by 3,545 in SIVUH, 192 in Mallow, 62 in CUMH, one in the Mercy, and none in Bantry.

Orthopaedics had the highest numbers waiting, followed by ophthalmology, otolaryngology (ENT), and pain relief.

The majority on the waiting list — more than 76,000 — were awaiting outpatient procedures, while more than 9,000 were awaiting inpatient procedures.

Of the total, 53,685 people were awaiting treatment for less than six months, 18,562 for six to 12 months, 8,071 for 12 to 18 months, and 5,416 for more than 18 months.

There were more than 13,400 people waiting more than 12 months — 16% of the total — while more than 5,400 people (6%) were waiting for more than 18 months.

A spokesperson for the Department of Health said that the health service has seen significant progress in reducing the length of time patients are waiting under the multi-annual Action Plan approach.

This includes a reduction of approximately 48%, or 136,600 fewer patients, waiting over 12 months since September 2021, they said.

“Notwithstanding these longer-term improvements, waiting lists more recently have been impacted by the ongoing trend of higher demand and increased referrals, which has offset the significantly increased levels of activity that are being delivered in acute hospitals,” the spokesperson said.

“While the health service does not want waiting lists to grow, increased referrals to hospital services can also reflect improved access to needed care, greater awareness of available services, and the expansion of services.”