Waterford Council pass two Sinn Féin motions condemning HSE backlogs
The motions centred around two HSE responses received by Waterford Sinn Féin TD David Cullinane
Waterford City and County Council passed two motions proposed by Sinn Féin councillors condemning extensive public healthcare backlogs across the county.
The first motion, proposed by Councillor Joeanne Bailey, urged the council to note “the unacceptable waiting times for public dental services in County Waterford”.
In response to a parliamentary question raised by Waterford Sinn Féin TD David Cullinane, the HSE said the waiting time for public dental services in Waterford City is approximately 54 months.
The waiting time for residents in Dungarvan and West Waterford is approximately 48 months.
45 service users with special needs are currently waiting for treatment with general anaesthesia. The HSE said there are currently 200 medically compromised patients on recall across Waterford.
The motion called on the Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll MacNeill “to urgently address these unacceptable delays by publishing a time-bound plan to reduce waiting lists for public dental services in County Waterford, including clear maximum waiting-time targets, by providing additional resources to the HSE Primary Care Dental Service in Waterford to clear existing backlogs”.
The second motion criticised the HSE over new findings showing University Hospital Waterford ranking bottom of the nation for timely chemotherapy services.
Of the 25 cancer centres nationwide, Waterford ranked second-last.
The data also pointed to a gulf between private and public healthcare, as UPMC Whitfield, a private hospital on Cork Road, led six centres nationwide for commencing radical treatment for primary cancers within 15 working days.
The contrast was critiqued as a failure in Government's aims to install a single-tier health system.
