[The sense and nonsense of waiting--waiting in ophthalmological practice]

Waiting is commonplace in many areas of health care and has become a topical and politically important issue in the provision of healthcare services. Whilst managers and governments (the Treek agreement ('Treekoverleg') on benchmarking in the Dutch health services, 2000) search for solutions to this problem and have formulated norms for what they consider acceptable, there is little information concerning the clients' own opinions. An understanding of these could be an important consideration during policy-making and political discussions. In the ophthalmological clinic it has been established that the waiting lists for cataract surgery should not exceed 6 months because patients may experience negative outcomes if they have to wait longer than this. Solutions to the problems of long waiting can be found in the use of digital communication methods or integration of eye-care with other professionals such as general practitioners. In some cases, having to wait may actually have positive aspects.