Letterkenny University Hospital (LUH) has been branded the “poor cousin” of the west and north west region, following the revelation of unequally long patient waiting times.
The comments were made by Independent Cllr Declan Meehan yesterday after it was revealed that haematology and respiratory patients face the longest delays in the HSE West and North West region.
In Letterkenny, urgent haematology referrals will receive their first appointments within 4-6 weeks, whereas in Mayo, they will be seen within one week.
The average wait time for other haematology patients is nine months. At Mayo University Hospital, they would be seen within a month.
The figures, issued to Cllr Meehan at the Regional Health Forum West, were described as concerning for local patients.
“Yet again we have evidence of much longer waiting times at Letterkenny University Hospital which indicates further that it is the poor cousin of the western region when it comes to HSE management and administration of resources,” Cllr Meehan told the forum.
In an update from the HSE, Cllr Meehan was told that Letterkenny University Hospital has secured funding for a third Haematologist. LUH is also set to seek funding for clinics for patients waiting the longest periods.
It was also revealed that 1,456 patients are on the waiting list for respiratory appointments at LUH.
Of those patients, 228 have been waiting more than a year for their first appointment date. Four of those patients have been on the waiting list for more than two years.
The current wait time for a first appointment with the respiratory service in LUH is 18-21 months.
Cllr Meehan commented that the figures are “staggering” and “significantly higher compared to the hospitals across the region.”
The second longest wait times are at Portiuncula University Hospital in Galway, where patients wait up to 14 months for new appointments.
Cllr Meehan was told that efforts are underway to reduce waiting times for respiratory appointments at LUH.
A third permanent consultant took up their post last week, while funding has also been secured for initiative clinics in 2025 that will specifically target the longest waiting patients.
Speaking on waiting lists, Cllr Meehn said: “I don’t know how many more indicators we need in relation to Letterkenny University Hospital before we take a massive step back, before we take a look at what is going on, look at the wait times and how they compare across the western seaboard nationally, why they are much worse and people are waiting for much longer.”