Over 12,500 patients are now on waiting lists at Galway's public hospitals.
Although the number has increased slightly in recent months, how long people are waiting is considered a much better metric than how many are waiting.
And in this regard, Galway University Hospitals have some of the worst metrics in the country.
HSE targets are 10 weeks for an outpatient appointment and 12 weeks for an inpatient or day case procedure.
Figures for December show just over 12,000 patients are now waiting at Galway University Hospitals.
Over 6,100 are waiting less than six months; 2,500 are waiting up to a year; almost 1,700 are waiting up to 18 months; and a further 1,700 are waiting longer than that.
These are some of the longest wait times in the country - for example, patients waiting more than 18 months at Galway University Hospitals account for 20 percent of the national total.
Meanwhile, there are 567 on waiting lists at Portiuncula Hospital in Ballinasloe, which is somewhat more aligned towards HSE targets.
The vast majority there are waiting less than six months - with 69 patients waiting up to a year; 43 up to 18 months, and 13 waiting beyond that.
While Government acknowledges much more work has to be done, it says steady progress is being made in reducing waiting times.
