Health Services Waiting Lists
Dail Éireann — 2026-07-09
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Jennifer Carroll MacNeill (FG), Dún Laoghaire

I agree with the Deputy. As I look at the actual numbers on the lists, not only is there regional variation but there is variation by specialty as well. To be very transparent, if I look at the waiting lists from May 2025 to 2026, for example, there has been a reduction of nearly 7,000 people on the audiology list. There has been, however, an increase of nearly 3,000 people on the occupational therapy list. There is an inconsistency there. There has been some progress is some areas, which is great, but none in others. If I look at the number of people waiting more than 39 weeks for audiology compared with May 2025, there has been a considerable reduction. In occupational therapy and psychology, there have been significant increases, while in physiotherapy, there has been a decrease. It is not just the postcode that matters but the specialism as well. That speaks, in some way, to the number of professionals who are available and trying to get them into place. As the Deputy knows, we are trying to make it easier for physiotherapists across Europe to work here. The profession has been too restricted. Similarly, with psychology, it should be the case that people with master's degrees are able to do much more than they have been able to do thus far. We are trying to expand the workforce, but we are also trying to expand the range of qualifications where people can deliver services.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-07-09/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-09-14T01:01:07+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-07-09