Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 14 May 2026
711. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the number of persons currently awaiting orthopaedic outpatient consultations for possible knee replacement surgery for more than , six months, twelve months and, eighteen months, by hospital.; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36275/26]
View answer712. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the average period of time between an orthopaedic outpatient consultation and placement on an inpatient surgical waiting list for knee replacement surgery. [36276/26]
View answer713. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether the HSE distinguishes publicly between persons awaiting outpatient orthopaedic assessment and persons formally placed on inpatient orthopaedic surgical waiting lists; and if she will provide details of same. [36277/26]
View answer714. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health number of patients currently awaiting knee replacement surgery who are not yet formally recorded on an inpatient waiting list because they remain awaiting outpatient assessment. [36278/26]
View answer715. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether any national prioritisation criteria exist for orthopaedic patients experiencing severe chronic pain, mobility deterioration or loss of independence while awaiting assessment or surgery. [36279/26]
View answer716. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the average total pathway waiting time from GP referral to completed knee replacement surgery in each HSE region. [36280/26]
View answer717. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether her Department or HSE has assessed the extent to which outpatient bottlenecks are contributing to delays in access to orthopaedic surgery. [36281/26]
View answer718. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether additional orthopaedic assessment clinics or theatre capacity are planned in 2026 to address delays in knee replacement pathways. [36282/26]
View answer719. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the number of orthopaedic patients removed from waiting lists in each of the past three years due to administrative review, non-response, or reclassification. [36283/26]
View answer720. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether patients awaiting orthopaedic surgery are routinely informed whether they are on an outpatient assessment list or a formal inpatient surgical waiting list. [36284/26]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 711 to 720, inclusive, together.
The National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF) is responsible for the collection, collation and validation of acute hospital waiting lists. Adult and child waiting list information for outpatient, inpatient/daycase (IPDC) and GI scopes by hospital and specialty is published monthly on its website: www.ntpf.ie/home/nwld.htm.
The information is now being made available through an interactive visual tool which provides users with a much-improved way of accessing and analysing waiting list information.
The waiting lists are compiled based on information provided by individual hospitals in accordance with agreed National Waiting List Protocols also published on the NTPF website. The Protocols provide guidance to hospital staff working in scheduled care or waiting list management to enable a consistent, standardised and user-friendly approach to the active management and scheduling of patients awaiting access to care.
While the Protocols provide detailed guidance on the management of outpatient, IPDC an GI Scopes waiting lists, on a general point it should be noted that an outpatient appointment is required to determine if surgery is required. If it is so determined, only then is the patient placed, with immediate effect, on the IPDC waiting list.
Administrative validation data at speciality level was introduced in 2025. In that year 14,097 patients were removed from orthopaedic waiting lists. This included patients who responded “no” to a validation letter, thereby confirming their preference to be removed from their respective waiting list, as well as patients who did not respond to a letter. All patients who are removed from waiting lists through administrative validation are removed in accordance with the relevant National Waiting List Protocol.
The Government acknowledges that there are too many patients on acute hospital waiting lists, and many of those patients are waiting too long for care.
We are focussed on having a public healthcare service in which everyone has timely access to high-quality scheduled care, where and when they need it.
I published the Waiting Time Action Plan (WTAP) for 2026 on January 30th, as part of this Government’s ongoing commitment to improving access to hospital care and reducing waiting times for patients.
The multi-annual Action Plan approach was implemented in September 2021 to sustainably reduce and reform hospital waiting lists and waiting times. Significant progress has been made under this approach in reducing the length of time patients are waiting.
