Patients with disabling arthritis are waiting up to four years for an initial outpatient appointment in Galway, where 940 people are on outpatient waiting lists.
In other parts of the State patients can wait up to 18 months, the Irish Society for Rheumatology said yesterday.
While such patients may suffer permanent disability because of their wait, they are not counted on the official waiting lists which the Government parties have promised to eliminate by 2004.
Although prompt attention would prevent joint deformity and disability, many patients do not see a rheumatologist until their joints are already destroyed, according to Prof Oliver Fitzgerald, president of the Irish Society for Rheumatology.
If this happens, patients may then find themselves joining the queue for an outpatient appointment with an orthopaedic surgeon - a further "uncounted" wait - and only after this appointment do they finally join the official waiting list for surgery.
If seen in time by a rheumatologist, arthritis sufferers can be treated by a combination of drugs and physiotherapy to prevent joint damage and permanent disability, said Prof Fitzgerald However, even when patients finally see a rheumatologist, they may have to wait a further nine months for a return visit.
Prof Fitzgerald described rheumatology services in Ireland as "totally inadequate", with only 16 rheumatologists for the State, the worst provision in the EU. He said the national health strategy failed to mention either rheumatology or sufferers with arthritis.
"Set against the backdrop of the national health strategy, which in particular emphasises equity and that all patients should have a fair opportunity to obtain full health potential, the rheumatology services in Ireland are currently totally inadequate," the Irish Society for Rheumatology said in a statement yesterday.
At its spring meeting yesterday, the society discussed finalising a report on service provision to be submitted to the Department of Health.
In its statement, the society said that in addition to providing a rheumatology service, 94 per cent of rheumatology consultants in Ireland had a commitment to the on-call A&E services, which compared with only 20 per cent of consultant rheumatologists in the UK. The provision to rheumatology departments of dedicated support staff, such as physiotherapists and occupational therapists, was either non-existent or inadequate.