The number of patients waiting for outpatient appointments has jumped by 8,000 in the space of a month, according to figures published by the HSE.

The data says there were more than half a million patients either waiting for an operation, an outpatient appointment or an internal endoscopy examination.

Independent TD and Co. Clare-based GP Michael Harty says there are a number of contributory factors.

He said: “The Irish health system has been reduced in size over the past five or six years and one of the fundamental problems is a capacity issue.

“Also, we are dealing with an increasing population and an increasing elderly population, and they are the patients who are occupying our hospital beds for longer and longer because they have complex needs.”