Elective Care

Cork University Hospital provides multiple clinical services for our patients. We see as many as 180,000 patients per year in an outpatient setting, where the patient attends an appointment with a Consultant or other senior Clinical Staff and generally goes home that same day. We provide surgical procedures for as many as 12,000 patients per year, with a mix of urgent and planned cases. Many of these planned cases come through the “Day of Surgery Admission” service and also go home that same day.

Elective care means care that can be provided in a planned way – so your GP may request an appointment to see a specialist Consultant for additional care that the GP may not be trained to provide. The consultant receiving your referral will decide on the clinical priority of your referral. . As there is substantial demand for CUH services, and limited staff and space to see patients, this can mean you may have to wait to see a Consultant. When your clinical situation is recognised as urgent, and your health may be at risk, a clinical decision can be taken to see you more urgently. In this way, we can ensure that the patients who need more immediate care will get that care.

We recognise that most people don’t want to wait for care, and we have been steadily focussing on reducing long waiting times for patients, in cooperation with our Clinical staff, our Administration staff and with the support of the HSE nationally, who are investing in reducing these waiting times. If your clinical situation changes or you are concerned that you are getting more ill, we recommend you consult with your GP, who may in turn advise the hospital of the changed circumstances. If you become suddenly unwell or experience a sudden worsening of your condition, you may wish to request an urgent appointment from your GP or, in an emergency, call 112 for an ambulance.