Galway University Hospitals show increase in attendance and reduction in waiting lists for 2024

Figures released by Galway University Hospitals (GUH) for 2024 demonstrate a sustained increase in activity and a reduction in waiting lists.

Despite an incredibly busy year GUH has made significant progress in reducing wait lists.

In total there were 316,279 outpatient appointments (new and return) in GUH last year, an increase of 7,223 on the previous year. Despite these challenges our OPD wait lists decreased by 16% with a 42% decrease in those waiting more than 15 months.

The overall number of patients waiting more than three years across all specialties, including outpatients, inpatients and day cases, reduced significantly by 54%.

Galway University Hospitals however continued to see high attendances across 2024 with a particular rise in older patients who were admitted for care.

In the Emergency Department, the hospital saw an increase in older people (aged 75 and over) both attending the ED and requiring admission to hospital last year, these figures increased by 10% and 8% respectively in 2024. Total attendance at the emergency department last year reached 80,726, a 7% increase on 2023.  

However, despite the challenges of increased attendances, particularly in caring for our older population who can have complex care needs, the hospital achieved a 4% reduction in the number of patients waiting on trolley’s each day at 8am.

Welcoming the reduction in waiting lists, Hospital Manager Chris Kane added, “It is good to see a reduction in the OPD waiting lists and that the initiatives we introduced have been positive. We hope to make further progress in 2025.

“We will continue to work with our community colleagues to ensure timely discharge of patients who can continue their care at home or in the community, allowing us to focus on patients’ urgent care needs.”

Ann Cosgrove, Integrated Healthcare Area Manager for Galway and Roscommon commended staff across the hospital for their ongoing work in reducing wait lists and improving the patient journey through the hospital.

“Galway University Hospitals remains incredibly busy, both in terms of those attending for acute care and for our patients awaiting follow up procedures. We continue to focus on providing the best access to care we can and will work hard to capitalise on these improvements. Working closely with community services will allow us to ensure our patients are receiving the best care in the right location.”