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Excessive waiting time for cataract operation

Posted By Concerned Rel

"Excessive waiting time for cataract operation"

About: Royal Alexandra Hospital / Ophthalmology

(as a relative),

My elderly mother, who has vascular dementia, was assessed by her optician over a period of time for cateracts and in November 2017 she was eventually referred for treatment. We were told there was a waiting list and we may have to wait a few months for an appointment, however, we subsequently waited 11 months for the initial consultation and another 5 months before she received treatment.  

I believe the length of time my mother had to wait was excessive. I am personally aware of several other elderly people who, who did not suffer from dementia, were referred after my mum and received treatment well before she did,

I have no complaint regarding the staff who undertook mum's day surgery, indeed they went out of their way to assist mum,  but I would be interested to find out why it took so long to have the procedure and if her dementia was a factor in the delay.

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Responses

Response from Lorna Fairlie, Patient Experience, Public Involvement Project Manager, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde 5 years ago
Lorna Fairlie
Patient Experience, Public Involvement Project Manager,
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde

I work in a small team in NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde which seeks to involve patients and carers in the work of the NHS. The biggest part of my role is in managing feedback projects across the Board area, one of which is Patient Opinion. It is my job to give our patients and carers the opportunity to give us feedback, and to make sure that this is passed to the right people to help us improve the services we provide.

Submitted on 07/05/2019 at 10:41
Published on Care Opinion at 11:17

Dear Concerned Rel,

Thank you for your post. The NHS Board apologises for the long wait experienced by your mother. In common with other Boards, NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde acknowledges that the waiting times for treatment in a number of specialty areas are much too long and are well beyond the target timescales that are in place. The Scottish Government has required NHS Boards to implement programmes to reduce long waiting times progressively over the coming months and to be back within the target timescales by Spring 2021. They are providing targeted funds to enable NHS Boards to achieve this.

In order for us to look into the specific circumstances of your mother’s wait, you would need to contact us directly with her details. People with dementia are not given any lesser priority than other people, but medical and other conditions can be a complicating factor which can cause surgery to be delayed in specific cases, based on the individual circumstances. We hope this reply is helpful, but please contact us directly if you would like us to look into your mother’s case - you can get in touch by emailing lorna.fairlie@ggc.scot.nhs.uk.

Best Wishes,

Jim Bretherton,

Ophthalmology Service Manager

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