The National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF) will be expanded to implement 14 pilot projects to provide outpatient appointments for public patients who have been waiting longest to see a specialist.
The projects will be run by the NTPF in co-operation with 14 public hospitals and will cover all the specialty areas where the NTPF purchases treatments for public patients, in ear, nose and throat, orthopaedics, urology, plastic surgery, opthalmology and general surgery.
Speaking at the launch of the NTPF's annual report the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children, Mary Harney, said: "These pilot projects will allow up to 5,000 people get earlier appointments to see a specialist so that a decision can be made on their treatment."
"The intention is that people waiting longest in a number of specialties will receive consultations at out-patient level in private hospitals. If it is decided that any of the patients involved in the pilot projects require surgery then, of course, the Fund will make these arrangements," the Tánaiste said.
The cost of the initiative will be €2.5 million and will be provided for in this year's NTPF budget.
Ms Harney also said she was pleased with the progress the NTPF is making with developing an on-line National Patient Treatment Register.
The register is expected to provide more accurate information on waiting lists and times and will be implemented later this year.
Meanwhile, the NTPF annual report show that the fund arranged treatment for 13,627 patients in 2004. A total of 1,522 had been treating in hospitals in England and Northern Ireland by the end of the year.
According to the report to date a total of 30,000 patients have been treated under the NTPF with the total funding for 2004 €44 million.
The report also said that in 2002 when the NTPF was started 80 per cent of hospitals were referring patients waiting over 12 months and some as long as eight years. However, this figure is down to 45 per cent of hospitals referring patients waiting 3-6 months and 49 per cent are referring patients waiting 6-12 months.
Mr Patrick O'Byrne, CEO of the NTPF, said: "Great progress has been achieved in the last year and the National Treatment Purchase Fund has made a significant contribution to the health service since its inception. Waiting times have reduced dramatically and while initially we concentrated on patients who had waited years for their operation, we are now arranging treatment for patients who have been waiting three months."