'Young woman alive, but barely living' waiting three years for endometriosis diagnosis, Dáil told

An estimated one in 10 women in Ireland suffer with endometriosis, which can damage their organs, cause infertility, and leave them in such pain they cannot work or go to school. File photo: Alamy/PA

Endometriosis is a crisis in women's health, but it is taking up to nine years to receive a diagnosis, the Dáil has been told.

During Wednesday's Leaders' Questions, Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald read a letter from an 18-year-old woman named Nikita who had written to her and has been waiting for three years for a surgery to see if she has the condition.

In the letter, she says that she is "a young woman alive, but barely living". She said that unlike her peers, she "hates weekends" as it means that a surgeon will not ring to schedule the surgery.

"I am 18 years old and instead of getting my driver's licence, picking out a debs dress, studying for my leaving cert, going out with friends or getting a job, I spend my days sitting bed in horrific amounts of pain. My days just roll in altogether. I barely get any sleep because of pain." 

"Everything I do isn't without a high level of pain. Walking hurts. I have to use a walker and a wheelchair to get around. I need help getting dressed, having a shower, doing my hair, going to the toilet. It's humiliating. Being a young woman once full of hope and dreams, now completely numb."

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An estimated one in 10 women in Ireland suffer with endometriosis, which can damage their organs, cause infertility, and leave them in such pain they cannot work or go to school.

Ms McDonald said that Nikita will travel to Romania to receive the treatment she needs because the treatment in Ireland is "simply not acceptable" and outlined a case where a woman had lost organs and another 27-year-old who had undergone a "radical" hysterectomy.

Ms McDonald said that the fact that women are travelling for treatment was the "most damning evidence of the Government's failures".

In response, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said that at the end of last year there were around 760 women on a waiting list for treatment and that the hope was to get through this backlog this year. He said that there are now two hubs in Ireland for treatment of the condition.

Mr Martin said that the Government "is listening" and that there have been improvements in the treatment times for the conditions. He said that there is specialist treatment available and the Government will ensure further improvements.

Labour leader Ivana Bacik also raised a health crisis, saying that 233 children remain on waiting lists for spinal surgery, many of whom have been waiting for over a year, a situation she says is "a national shame". 

She raised the case of 14-year-old Daniel Collins from Tralee, who will require two surgeries due to the severity of the curvature of his spine. Daniel's mother and sister on Wednesday were on RTÈ radio, a position which Ms Bacik said they should not have been in.