NTPF to be used to slash waiting list

AROUND 600 patients are to be referred to the National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF) from the Cork area, following criticism that the scheme has not been used as effectively in the region as other parts of the country.

The announcement was made yesterday by officials from the Health Service Executive (Southern Forum), and comes after criticism from its own chairman, Cllr Ciaran Lynch, that Cork University Hospital (CUH) was significantly behind other hospitals when it came to using the important scheme.

Gerry O’Dwyer, network manager for the Southern Hospitals Group, said the NTPF is now to undertake an outpatient waiting list initiative at CUH.

This will firstly involve the referral of 300 patients from the orthopaedic outpatient waiting list, and a further 300 from the ophthalmic list. Following this, the initiative will be extended to cardiology waiting lists, Mr O’Dwyer said.

Meanwhile, he added, a further 800 patients on outpatients’ waiting lists will be put in touch with the NTPF, so they can engage directly with its officials regarding potential treatment elsewhere.

Mr O’Dwyer said the move came about as a result of negotiations that had been ongoing for some time.

However, Labour Councillor John Gilroy claimed the latest moves had come about because of the negative publicity generated by party colleague and forum chairman, Cllr Lynch. This was last night denied by the HSE, which said the NTPF had only recently started dealing with outpatients’ referrals.

Mr O’Dwyer agreed to a request from Sinn Féin Councillor Toireasa Ferris to also look at NTPF schemes for orthodontic patients.

“I think it (the scheme) will be successful and we’ll see significant movement. It is something we’re very concerned about,” Mr O’Dwyer said. In reply to a question from Cllr Jim Daly (FG), Mr O’Dwyer said there were anything between 5,000 and 6,000 outpatients still on all CUH waiting lists.

Meanwhile, the HSE has said a consortium may be given a vacant site at CUH, by the end of the year, on which it could construct a private hospital.