Fianna Fáil Spokesperson on Health, Billy Kelleher TD, has responded to the announcement that Tallaght Hospital has a backlog of 6,000 x-rays and scans, which referring doctors have not yet received.
Deputy Kelleher commented: “This is an extremely alarming revelation that has the potential to put patient health at risk. To have as many as 6,000 scans waiting to be dictated for referral by a consultant is shameful.
“Any patient will tell you that the anxious wait for a CT, x-ray or MRI scan can be extremely difficult and to have such a backlog here raises many serious questions. What is even more alarming is the fact that an internal memo warns that there may be a medical risk to patients because of the delays.
“This problem has been apparent for the last four months; what measures if any were introduced to tackle this?
“This casts another dark shadow over Minister James Reilly and his handling of the Health Service. I am calling on Minister Reilly to come before the Dáil and make a full and frank statement on yet another controversy in his Department.
“In opposition, Minister Reilly was quick to point fingers and demand for heads to roll; I hope he uses a more tactful approach here and seeks to provide a solution to the problem rather look for blame.”
