Patients in the south-east are waiting up to seven years to see an ear, nose and throat specialist, and five years to see an orthopaedic surgeon, once they are referred by their family doctor, new figures show.
The figures, which are not normally published, highlight the so-called problem of "hidden" waiting times which patients must endure before they are seen by a consultant and formally put on a waiting list to be attended to as an inpatient or outpatient.
It is these inpatient and outpatient waiting lists which are published regularly by the Department of Health, and patients waiting long periods on these lists can be referred for treatment under the National Treatment Purchase Fund.
The new figures show the average waiting time for a patient to see a consultant for the first time after being referred by their GP ranges from one month to seven years in the South Eastern Health Board region.
At Waterford Regional Hospital the waiting times vary from five to seven years to see an ear, nose and throat (ENT) specialist; up to three years to see a consultant surgeon; and up to five years to see a consultant dermatologist.
The figures show it can take up to five years for a first appointment with a consultant surgeon at Kilcreene Orthopaedic Hospital in Waterford.
The health board pointed out yesterday that urgent cases would be seen more quickly.
Dr Liam Twomey, the Wexford GP and Independent TD, said he was shocked when he recently received a letter from the health board to say one of his patients requiring hip replacements would not even be assessed by a consultant so that he can actually join an official waiting list for at least three years. He has already been waiting over a year.
"I just feel this is the real issue in the health service. It's not the fancy stuff of reports or value for money. It's the issue of asking people to wait inordinate lengths of time before they are seen by a consultant," Dr Twomey said.
"The reality is some people have to wait the lifetime of a government to see an orthopaedic surgeon. There is something significantly wrong when that is happening," he added.
"This man is crippled at the moment. He is in constant pain and he hasn't even had his first appointment. He won't get one either because he is not considered urgent and he won't be considered urgent until he falls over and breaks one of those hips," he claimed.
When Dr Twomey wrote to the health board about the delay he was told there were more than 4,000 patients awaiting orthopaedic outpatient appointments. "Despite the best efforts of the consultant orthopaedic surgeons, the demand on the service is continuing to increase," the letter said.
He was also told if the condition of his patient deteriorated and a consultation became "more urgent", he should advise the health board.
The board, in a statement last evening, accepted that waiting times to see an ENT consultant were unacceptable. "There has now been an initiative to deal with this situation," it said.
"The SEHB has appointed a fourth temporary ENT consultant to address what is an unacceptably long waiting time for appointment. Commencing from September 2003, over the next six to 12 months this development is expected to effect a significant reduction in waiting times," it added.