Hospital waiting lists reach more than a million patients for the first time

The number of patients waiting for a hospital appointment has surpassed the million mark for the first time.

Figures from the National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF) show 1,008,600 patients were on the public hospital waiting list at the end of May, a rise of 10,000 on the previous month.

The Irish Health Consultants Association (IHCA) warned that the decision to prioritise emergency admissions at the expense of those waiting for elective procedures would have “severe knock-on consequences for patient health outcomes”.

The NTPF figures show 669,506 patients are waiting for a first hospital outpatient consultation, 115,450 patients are waiting for an appointment for their inpatient or day-case treatment and 40,986 are waiting for an endoscopy.

There are 111,643 patients waiting for a planned procedure, 78,333 of whom have already been seen but are waiting further procedures and 34,049 whose procedures have been suspended for clinical, personal or social reasons.

A further 36,978 parents are waiting for their inpatient/day-case or endoscopy procedure

The IHCA said more than 286,500 elective surgeries, endoscopies, day-case treatments and outpatient appointments were cancelled last year – an increase of more than 19,000 on the 267,400 reported in 2024.

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This has had a knock-on effect on waiting lists for outpatients, inpatients and day cases which has reached 72,180 so far this year, the ICHA stated.

The IHCA said the cancellation of elective, essential hospital appointments and operations “cannot be the go-to solution to our trolley crisis” as it would lead to “severe adverse consequences” for patient health outcomes.

It added that since the Sláinteacre report was published in May 2017, hospital waiting lists have grown by 425,000 – a 73 per cent increase.

IHCA president Prof Gabrielle Colleran said the current waiting lists were hampering “diagnosis, treatment and delivery of care”.

She said the Government was treating scheduled care as an “optional extra” in the delivery of healthcare.

“The persistent trolley crisis in our hospitals is a direct result of chronic bed shortages and limited step-down capacity, and responding to these deficits by simply cancelling life-enhancing surgery is completely unacceptable and poorly thought out,” she added.

“We urge the Department of Health and HSE to reverse this negative policy and come to the table with long-term and sustainable solutions that our patients deserve.

“That includes ensuring that the productivity of our limited consultant capacity is maximised by having them working alongside their multidisciplinary teams.”