The National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF) is responsible for the collection, collation and validation of Inpatient, Day Case and Outpatient waiting lists. The IPDC GI Endoscopy Waiting List Open Data report shows the total number of people waiting, across the various time bands, for GI Endoscopy treatment. The Children’s Health Act 2018 came into effect on 1st January 2019. Under this act, Children’s Health Ireland was established and all assets, liabilities and records were transferred from Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital Crumlin, Temple Street Children’s University Hospital and National Childrens Hospital at Tallaght University Hospital to the new body. From 1st January 2019, all NTPF reports reflect this change and data from the three sites of Children’s Health Ireland are reported as one entity. On the 31st of July 2019 Children's Health Ireland opened a new Paediatric Outpatient Department and Urgent Care Centre at CHI Connolly in Blanchardstown. The waiting lists for this site are incorporated into the Children's Health Ireland figures. Please note that NTPF does not collect activity data, i.e., numbers treated or removed. A snapshot of the number of patients waiting in each hospital is collected and published, monthly, on the NTPF website. Boards and management of individual public hospitals are responsible for the accuracy and the integrity of patient data submitted to NTPF.

The National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF) is responsible for the collection, collation and validation of Inpatient, Day Case and Outpatient waiting lists.

The IPDC GI Endoscopy Waiting List report shows the total number of patients waiting, across the various time bands, for GI Endoscopy treatment. Each report lists the numbers waiting per Hospital in each particular specialty. To preserve confidentiality, where there are <5 patients waiting in a particular specialty/hospital, we have aggregated the numbers under a ‘Small Volume’ heading.

Each report is aggregated data on a monthly basis over a year. The current year’s report will be appended to each month.

Adult/Child classification: From 1/1/2015 this is based on each hospital’s designation, for example all Children’s Hospitals will have all patients set as Child, all Adult-only hospitals have all patients set as Adult and all mixed Adult/Child hospitals have the patients designated based on age (0-15 = Child). Prior to 1/1/2015 each hospital managed their own adult/child classification ages.

Please note that NTPF does not collect activity data i.e. numbers treated or removed. We collect a snapshot of the number of patients waiting in each hospital and publish the numbers monthly on our website.

Boards and management of individual public hospitals are responsible for the accuracy and the integrity of patient data submitted to NTPF.

Work on the quality of this data is on-going between NTPF and individual hospitals and technical and administrative issues will be addressed as they arise.

Notes for consideration:.

• From August 2015 NTPF standardised the Time band categories on our published reports. We now show 0-3 Months, 3-6, 6-9, 9-12, 12-15, 15-18 and 18+. This aligns to the DoH/HSE clearance targets for waiting lists, in line with maximum allowable waiting times directed by the Minister for Health. • St. Michaels Hospital, Dun Laoghaire - Inpatient/Day case file since Nov 2015. • From July 2015 Tallaght Paediatrics and Adults figures were shown separately. • Due to PAS system upgrade in University Hospital Limerick no file was received from July 2015 until September 2015. • Due to PAS system upgrade in St John's Hospital Limerick no file was received from March 2016 to May 2016. • Due to a PAS system upgrade in Nenagh Hospital no files were received for October 2016.