MORE than 5,000 children in Northern Ireland have been waiting over a year to be admitted to hospital for treatment or undergo day case procedures, new figures have revealed.
Under-18s living in west and north Belfast account for almost a fifth of those facing delays, while the lowest number affected reside in the North Down area.
The emergence of the latest waiting time statistics come two months after a damning investigation found that children with suspected cancer were among those facing lengthy waits for their first appointment with a consultant.
The Children's Commissioner probe called a full review of the child health system.
SDLP health representative Colin McGrath obtained a breakdown of paediatric waiting lists up until the end of September for those requiring a hospital bed for inpatient care as well as day case appointments.
Health Minister Robin Swann confirmed in response to an Assembly Question that a total of 5,007 patients under age of 18 were affected.
West Belfast saw the highest number, at 455, following by north Belfast (417) and Foyle (324).
The South Down Assembly Member said he was shocked by the numbers.
"That’s thousands of young people with a medical issue that needs attention, waiting to be seen and languishing on a waiting list," Mr McGrath said.
"When we think of medical waiting lists we tend to think of adults or older people, few of us realise that it affects people of all ages right across our society. This 5,000 people will span infants right up to those about to turn 18, all of them waiting over a year for a medical appointment.
"It’s deeply distressing that we are failing people so badly, regardless of age nobody should be waiting so long for an appointment. Being left on a waiting list for so long creates huge anxiety and the longer it takes to diagnose a condition the more chance of it progressing, something that will not be helping by the stress of waiting to be seen."
In June, Mr Swann pledged to "banish" spiralling waiting lists by 2026 as part of an ambitious £700 million plan to overhaul hospital care.
Some adult patients are waiting seven years to see a consultant for the first time amid growing concerns about an emerging two-tier public/private health system.
There are currently more than 340,000 people on the north's hospital waiting lists - consistently the worst in the NHS - with the pandemic exacerbating a problem which has been "building for seven years", according to Mr Swann.
