The Minister for Health and Children, Mr Martin, has made a renewed plea to doctors to refer patients on long-term waiting lists for treatment in Britain.
Speaking at the launch of the National Treatment Purchase Fund's (NTPF) information campaign yesterday, Mr Martin said it was "essential that the rate of referrals to the UK increases" if the "group one" list of patients (adults waiting more than a year and children waiting more than six months) was to be cleared.
Four hundred beds have been made available this year in British hospitals under the NTPF for the treatment of these patients.
However, only 26 patients out of more than 8,000 on the group one list have been referred so far this year for treatment in Britain under the fund.
"The group one list will only be cleared if all the available beds, fully funded and sourced by the NTPF here and in the UK, are availed of," the Minister said.
Patients on long-term hospital waiting lists should receive notification of their eligibility for treatment under the fund from their health board. There is also an information line - 1890 720 820 - that patients can call to establish their entitlement to treatment.
Patients opting for treatment under the fund are asked if they would like to be treated in a British hospital. The NTPF, through the health board, will contact the patient's consultant and ask that they refer them to the appropriate hospital for treatment. Consultants may also contact the NTPF themselves to refer a patient.
The NTPF has said that despite "patient willingness" to be treated in Britain, there had been a shortage of referrals.
"There is no need for patients to wait any longer," Mr Martin said. "The process is simple and straightforward and eligible patients can receive treatment in a matter of weeks."
The Irish Hospital Consultants' Association (IHCA) has said the reason for the low number of referrals this year was that the option was not available until late September or early October, and there was a necessary lead-in time to making such a referral.
"The lead-in time is longer than people think," secretary-general of the IHCA, Mr Finbarr Fitzpatrick, said. "If a patient has been on a waiting list for 20 months their condition might well have changed. The NTPF guidelines state patients may have to be reviewed before being referred for treatment. They will then have to go on a waiting list for an outpatient's appointment to be seen by the consultant."
He stressed that it was the policy of the association not to encourage any action that would disadvantage a patient, and consultants were "more than willing" to co-operate with the programme.
"The Irish public hospital service should have sufficient capacity to treat these patients, but we recognise that if a patient is waiting one or two years they're going to want the fastest treatment available."
