Limerick hospitals reach new high as waiting lists grow to 41,000

ALMOST 41,000 patients were left on a waiting list for treatment and appointments in Limerick hospitals in August, new figures show.

In a monthly report published by the National Treatment Purchase Fund, there were 40,963 inpatients and outpatients on a waiting list at University Hospital Limerick, St John’s Hospital and Croom Orthopaedic Hospital last month.

This is a 1.1% increase on the previous month’s waiting list rate, when there were 40,539 patients still not seen to by a consultant or doctor.

There was a small 121-person decrease in the number of patients seeking treatment last month, with 4,180 inpatients on a waiting list. 

Inpatient waiting list numbers were seen at UHL and St John’s, with 2,844 patients and 996 patients, respectively.

However, more than 500 outpatients have been added to waiting lists at the three hospital over the past four weeks; 28,764 at the Dooradoyle hospital; 1,242 at St John’s; and 6,777 at Croom.

According to the monthly figures, 11,331 patients have been waiting for more than a year for treatment and appointments.

The UL Hospitals Group, which covers the Mid-West region, is the best-performing hospital group in the country in NTPF data, with 45,300 patients on a waiting list. It is behind the Children’s Hospital Group, which had 46,926 on a waiting list.