Increased risk rating for scheduled care waiting times

The HSE’s risk rating surrounding its ability to reduce scheduled care waiting times has increased. The development followed a HSE workshop involving Regional Executive Officers (REOs).

In May, the HSE Chief Risk Officer (CRO) Mr Joe Ryan presented the most recent HSE corporate risk register (CRR) to the audit and risk committee. According to minutes, committee members noted that an increase in the risk rating surrounding scheduled care services “arose from insights” from a “recent REO workshop”.

The risk relating to scheduled care services was the only CRR item to see an increase to its rating. In the CRR document seen by the Medical Independent (MI), the risk is described as the inability to reduce “significant and sustained” waiting times for patients and service users to access scheduled health and social care services.

A HSE spokesperson told MI that the CRO meets with the six REOs and other national directors to assess the CRR as part of the quarterly review process. Based on workshop discussions, the rating for the area of scheduled care was increased.

“The increased rating reflects the ongoing challenge of achieving targeted waiting time improvements in a context where demand for services continues to exceed available capacity,” said the spokesperson.

“Existing controls and improvement measures are delivering positive outcomes, including significant reductions in waiting times since 2021. However, sustained external demand pressures (ie, population growth, ageing demographics, increased service utilisation) mean that the risk to achieving targeted waiting time improvements remains and continues to be actively managed through ongoing improvement initiatives and capacity-enhancing measures.”

In May, the audit and risk committee also noted that discussions were planned to consider the potential inclusion on the CRR of the implications of artificial intelligence expansion within the HSE.

Last month, MI reported that potential fuel disruption arising from conflict in the Middle East was also being assessed for possible inclusion on the CRR.

“The HSE recognises the importance of adopting a proactive approach to managing risk to support both the achievement of its objectives and compliance with governance requirements,” said the HSE spokesperson.