Waiting lists continue to rise and the Health Service Executive had a deficit of €327m at the end of August, the latest performance report from the HSE shows.

The financial situation at University Hospital Limerick has deteriorated further and it overspent by €19.7m.

The outpatient waiting list is at 364,182 patients, with 41,604 patients waiting a year or more to be seen.

There are 48,435 adults waiting for an inpatient or day case treatment.

The number of adults waiting more than eight months to be seen is up 12% on the July figure to 8,692 patients.

For children, 4,996 are waiting for an inpatient or day case treatment.

The number of children waiting more than 20 weeks is up 16% on the July figure to 3,247.

Other hospitals that are heavily over budget are: University Hospital Waterford at €9.9m, Beaumont Hospital at €8.9m, St Vincent's and the Mater each at €8.8m over, and Cork University Hospital at €8.3m.

3,700 fewer planned operations in August

The Oireachtas Health Committee heard that there were 3,700 fewer planned admissions for operations in August, compared with August last year, as a result of increased emergency department admissions.

HSE Director General Tony O'Brien told the committee that this 5% reduction in planned operations has had a knock-on effect on the number of people on waiting lists.

Mr O'Brien said that the HSE has no policy in relation to manipulating waiting lists.

Had the HSE been aware that any manager urged employees to manipulate waiting lists, if indeed it ever happened, this would be subject of appropriate disciplinary action, he said.

Mr O'Brien said the capacity of acute hospitals to respond to increased demand is reduced due to having 704 people who are medically fit for discharge from hospitals awaiting alternative care arrangements.

He expected to submit the national service plan for 2015 to the Minister for Health by mid November based on the budget.

The current HSE deficit is €275m.

Concern over mental health services for children

The committee also heard that a third of children and adolescents in need of mental health services up to June this year were admitted to adult wards.

The Director of Mental Health Reform told the committee this morning that despite the Mental Health Code of Practice stating no child should be admitted into an adult ward outside exceptional circumstances, of 158 admissions, 53 were to adult units.

Dr Shari McDaid said this was "too many".

She also told the committee that the waiting list for Child and Adolescent Mental Health services is too long.

By July this year, 2,757 children were waiting to be seen by CAMS.

Dr McDaid said that while that represented a 2% decrease on the previous year, "there are a large number of children waiting to be seen".

She also criticised the Health Service Executive, saying it had been very slow in deciding where to spend the money allocated to Mental Health Services, noting that it decided where to spend the 2014 allocation in September this year.

Dr McDaid said it is the third year the decision on spending has been delayed and said she hoped the HSE would be quicker with that decision in 2015.