'From crisis to catastrophe' - Hospital waiting lists heading for a million, consultants say

As of last month, almost 907,617 people - the equivalent of one-fifth of the population of the country - were on some form of hospital waiting list. File Picture: PA

208 people have been added to public hospital waiting lists every day over the past year - an average of almost nine patients per hour, according to new figures from the Irish Hospital Consultants Association (IHCA).

The group said the spiraling and "unmanageable" waiting lists are the result of "years of underinvestment and a lack of capacity in the health system."

As of last month, almost 907,617 people - the equivalent of one-fifth of the population of the country - were on some form of hospital waiting list. Roughly 100,000 of those waiting are children.

Since August 2019, a further 125,000 have been added to the lists, and with the numbers expected to rise past the one million mark in the coming months, the IHCA said the situation may soon move "from crisis to catastrophe." 

According to the IHCA, it could be 2035 before backlogs are cleared and waiting lists are reduced to more manageable levels.

The group said that “trust and culture within the health service must be addressed” in order to tackle the lists.

Recruitment and retention issues

Consultants have long maintained that one of the most significant causes of the waiting lists is the ongoing consultant recruitment and retention issues being experienced by the health service.

At present, one in five permanent hospital consultant posts are either vacant or not filled as needed, and there are over 700 vacancies across the country’s acute public hospitals and mental health services.

The IHCA said the recent plan published by the Government and HSE provides “little insight into how these vacancies will be addressed as a core part of delivering on the goal to temper the growth of waiting lists in the short term.” 

Speaking ahead of the IHCA’s Annual Conference 2021 this weekend, IHCA President Professor Alan Irvine said there had been a "decades-long erosion" of trust between hospital consultants and health service management.

IHCA President, Professor Alan Irvine. File Picture: Gareth Chaney/Collins

"It’s been a year since I spoke at the last conference, warning that the collision of Covid-19 and an under-resourced health system had backed us into a corner.

"One year on, and we find ourselves still with our backs against the wall. Almost 70,000 more people have been added to a waiting list which now stands at 907,617 and is likely to grow once new figures are published next week."

Prof. Irvine acknowledged that the country and health system had been through a tumultuous year, but said it was "critical" that health officials and Government assess lessons learned over the course of the pandemic and "how best to apply these insights to improve service delivery for our patients".

"Unfortunately, trust levels between healthcare professionals and health service management are at an all-time low," he said.

Hospital waiting lists are at unmanageable levels. Last year almost 9 people were added every hour, 24 hours a day, to a waiting list.

@DonnellyStephen@MichealMartinTD @LeoVaradkar @paulreiddublin how many more patients will be added before there is firm action? #CareCantWait pic.twitter.com/cjW2b61PiR

— IHCA (@IHCA_IE) October 8, 2021

"For this to work, we need empathetic leadership that engages constructively with frontline hospital staff, resources to implement workable solutions to treat patients without delay, and most of all trust. 

“Unless we change health service management culture, do the hard work of re-establishing trust, and improve working relationships, it is difficult to see how the Department can ever deliver an effective and empathetic public health service for the Irish people,” he added.