Nearly 80% of patients in Ayrshire & Arran are waiting more than 18 weeks for their first appointment at a pain clinic according to the latest figures.
Between April and the end of July this year, 477 patients seeking an initial appointment for chronic pain issues in Ayrshire & Arran waited longer than the 18 week target. While the figures across Scotland show more than half of patients exceed the waiting time, NHS Ayrshire & Arran had the worst stats of any individual health board.
South Scotland MSP Brian Whittle has called for the Health Secretary Jeane Freeman to put plans in place to cut waiting times and get pain patients the support they need. Brian, who is also Convenor of the Scottish Parliament’s Cross Party Group on Arthritis and Musculoskeletal Conditions, has previously highlighted the plight of patients with chronic pain during lockdown with some reporting that they had been left with no option but to travel to England for vital treatment.
Brian Whittle MSP said:
“These figures highlight the scale of the impact lockdown has had on people dealing with chronic pain.
It’s understandable that there were delays during the peak of the pandemic but those delays cannot be allowed to become the norm.
Living with chronic pain is difficult at the best of times, but without access to appropriate support and treatment, it can quickly become unbearable.
No patient in Scotland should feel like the only option left is to travel elsewhere in the UK for help. Jeane Freeman must do more to cut these waiting times and help patients in Ayrshire & Arran and right across Scotland.”
