Galway Bay fm newsroom - The number of patients waiting more than a year for gastro-intestinal scopes at University Hospital Galway has rocketed by more than 350 percent in less than four months.
That's according to Galway West Fine Gael TD Hildegarde Naughton who says the figures show UHG no longer has the capacity to provide for the healthcare needs of Galway and the surrounding region.
A total of 1,624 patients are currently on waiting lists for investigative scopes, which allow doctors to look for abnormalities in the colon, stomach, and elsewhere in the digestive tract.
One patient has been on the list for more than three years, another patient has been waiting for more than two years, and two patients have been waiting for between 15 and 18 months.
Deputy Naughton says a long-term solution must be found, which would see the development of a new hospital on the grounds of Merlin Park.
