Local waiting lists for eye care could be "eliminated" in three years if funding gaps for a new eye care delivery model are filled.
That's according to Mater Hospital ophthalmologist David Keegan, who addressed the Oireacthas Health Committee yesterday about a new model in the North East.
The North East region comprises Cavan, Monaghan, North Dublin, Meath, Louth, Westmeath and Longford, with a combined estimated population of 1.2 million.
At the beginning of the pandemic, the waitlist for eye care delivery in the region was around 15,000, and there were also around 2,500 patients waiting for cataract surgery.
However, despite the impact of the Covid pandemic, there has been a significant decrease in waiting lists.
This included a 71% reduction in adult patients on waiting lists for more than 12months, and a 21% decrease in the numbers waiting more than a year on the surgical waiting list.
Mr Keegan said this has been achieved "through the goodwill and willingness of all those working in Eye Care across the region, in all different disciplines, to work together to tackle the problem in Eye Care delivery".
Collaboration between the community health organisations and the Mater hospital, which anchors the clinical governance, "a hub and spoke model for service integration was tested".
This shared the workload between hospitals and community specialists.
Mr Keegan said the funding stream remains an "issue that needs tackled", but added that a solution "is very close".
If supported in filling this funding gap, Mr Keegan says waiting lists for eye care could eliminate in three years, and added that he "feels strongly" that this could provide a model for eye care delivery in other regions.
