AQW 20636/17-22 Written question to the Minister of Health
To ask the Minister of Health to detail the current number of patients on the waiting list for cataract surgery.
Asked by Andrew Muir MLA on 18 June 2021
- Answered
- Written
- After due date
- Tabled
- 18 June 2021
- Answer due by
- 5 July 2021
- Answered
- 6 October 2021110 days after tabling
- Department
- Department of Health
- Priority question
- No
Answer
Provisional data at 31st August 2021 indicated that there were 5,686 patients waiting for inpatient or day case cataract surgery in Northern Ireland. Data validation has not been completed and, therefore, data presented are provisional.
A number of services may not be provided at a patient’s local HSC Trust, and instead are provided at centres within other HSC Trusts or a Day Case Procedure Centre (DPC). Patients are reported against the HSC Trust or DPC responsible for the service that will be providing cataract surgery.
Table 1: Number of patients waiting for Cataract Surgery as at 31st August 2021 by HSC Trust and weeks waiting
| HSC Trust | Weeks Waiting | Total Waiting | |||||
| 0-6 | >6-13 | >13-21 | >21-26 | >26-52 | >52 | ||
| Belfast | 93 | 181 | 139 | 66 | 127 | 190 | 796 |
| South Eastern | 68 | 32 | 25 | 1 | 13 | 66 | 205 |
| Southern | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 7 |
| Western | 145 | 257 | 181 | 97 | 460 | 1,205 | 2,345 |
| DPC | 327 | 416 | 347 | 115 | 481 | 647 | 2,333 |
| Total | 633 | 887 | 692 | 279 | 1,082 | 2,113 | 5,686 |
Source: DoH Inpatient Waiting Times Dataset
Data are provisional