Social Democrats by-election candidate M\u00edde Nic Fhionnlaoich has accused the government of failing the people of Galway after Galway University Hospitals were found to have the highest hospital waiting lists in the country.<\/p>\n
M\u00edde said:<\/p>\n
\u201cFigures provided by the National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF) show a staggering 7,978 people on waiting lists for Galway University Hospitals who are waiting longer than 18 months \u2013 a rise of almost 30 per cent on the previous year. This a damning indictment of failed health policy by this and previous governments, with patients in Galway paying a high price for decades of political inaction.<\/p>\n
\u201cSuffering from a health condition is difficult enough without people having to endure endless waiting times for treatment.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need the full implementation of Sl\u00e1intecare and the long-promised elective-only hospital for Galway, which is supposed to be operational by 2028. Instead, we’ve seen confusion from the HSE and the Department of Health, a lack of updated timelines for its delivery, and people left not trusting that this government will deliver for them. Meanwhile, people in Galway wait longer than the rest of the country for basic care.<\/p>\n
\u201cA 30 per cent increase in the waiting list doesn\u2019t just represent numbers on a page \u2013 behind this figure lie thousands of human stories of people in need of treatment, care and reassurance. For the waiting list to jump so drastically in one year isn’t just a health crisis, it’s a health catastrophe.<\/p>\n
\u201cLong waiting times are causing real stress and anxiety to people and families across Galway who deserve a properly functioning health service that finally delivers for them.\u201d<\/p>\n
March 2, 2026<\/em><\/p>\n Note:<\/strong>\u00a0The Social Democrats will hold a public meeting on Galway\u2019s Healthcare Crisis at Knocknacarra Community Centre on Thursday, March 26, at 7pm. It will be attended by the party\u2019s health spokesperson P\u00e1draig Rice TD, Galway West director of elections Senator Patricia Stephenson, and candidate M\u00edde Nic Fhionnlaoich.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Social Democrats by-election candidate M\u00edde Nic Fhionnlaoich has accused the government of failing the people of Galway after Galway University Hospitals were found to have the highest hospital waiting lists in the country. M\u00edde said: \u201cFigures provided by the National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF) show a staggering 7,978 people on waiting lists for Galway University […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":16419,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[12,806,802,11,803,7,479],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16417","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-galway","category-galway-west","category-galway-west-by-election","category-health","category-mide-nic-fhionnlaoich","category-press-release","category-unlisted"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n