The implementation of the new the Waiting Time Action Plan (WTAP) 2026 will be overseen by the waiting list task force.
Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll MacNeill said the WTAP, which was published on Friday 30 January, “is a multi-faceted approach with one overarching aim, to ensure people get access to faster care and achieve better health outcomes.”
According to the document, the governance structure of the WTAP 2026 “will broadly” follow the model and principles developed for previous action plans, with oversight of its implementation conducted through the task force.
The task force, co-chaired by the Department of Health Secretary General and the HSE CEO, will be comprised of senior representatives from the Department, the HSE Centre and Regions and the National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF).
“It will report directly to the Minister for Health, with whom issues will be escalated as required,” reads the plan. “The WTAP 2026 also falls under the broader umbrella of Sláintecare reforms in relation to improving access to care and progress reports will continue to be provided to the Sláintecare Programme Board for discussion at their meetings,” according to the plan.
Minister Carroll MacNeill said: “In order to reduce waiting times we need to see more activity that results in patients receiving care, particularly those waiting the longest. As detailed in the action plan, this will be achieved through a combination of measures including service reforms and innovation; increased productivity and improved performance; investment in infrastructure and staffing; embracing digital solutions; and supplemented by targeted additional capacity via the NTPF.”
According to the Department the WTAP sets out six overarching and interconnected targets, which will be achieved through the delivery of 36 actions under the themes of “reforming planned care”, “enabling planned care” and “capacity optimisation”.
Targets in the WTAP include:
Sláintecare wait time targets: 50 per cent of patients to be waiting less than the Sláintecare wait time targets of 10 weeks for outpatient (OPD) appointments and 12 weeks for inpatient and day case (IPDC) procedures; and 65 per cent of patients to be waiting less than the Sláintecare wait time target of 12 weeks for GI scopes.
Weighted average wait time: Reducing the weighted average wait time to < 5.5 months for OPD and IPDC and to < 3.5 months for GI scopes.
Patients waiting less than 12 months: 90 per cent of patients to be waiting less than 12 months for first access to OPD services.
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