A mum has revealed her six-year-old epileptic daughter could have to wait up to three years for treatment.
Brooklyn Freeman has complex epilepsy, and sometimes her seizures are so bad she has to be rushed to hospital by ambulance.
But the youngster is currently waiting for a string of appointments and procedures – with her mum being told she could have to wait a total of three years to be seen.
Now Lorna Spink has set up a support group for other carers in a similar position.
The 31-year-old, from Elgin, has been chasing up health staff across the region in order to speed up the process for little Brooklyn.
However, the full-time carer has discovered that several departments are short of staff due to retirements, and the huge demand for appointments.
Last night, she admitted she feared it could take an emergency situation before her daughter gets the treatments she needs.
Ms Spink said: “It can be a struggle. It’s very tiring but it’s just what carers do – you just get on with it and do the best you can do.
“You spend your time constantly chasing up departments, you chase up everybody. If you don’t, then you don’t know when you’ll hear from them.
“It gets to the point where you’ve had enough of chasing people because you’ve got enough to do at home.”
Brooklyn was diagnosed with intractable epilepsy after suffering her first seizure when she was just nine months old.
The Greenwards Primary School pupil is waiting on a series of appointments to allow her family to cope better with her complex needs.
Ms Spink has been told Brooklyn could have to wait up to a year for a consultant appointment at the Rowan Centre in Elgin, 11 months for an MRI scan under general anaesthetic in Aberdeen and 44 weeks for treatment for a glue ear. She has also been told the paediatric department at Dr Gray’s Hospital is running with a backlog of six months.
But despite the frustrating wait, Ms Spink said: “The NHS does a great job if there’s an emergency – they’re always there when we need an ambulance for Brooklyn, which can be quite frequent.
“For the other services we just seem to sit here waiting – waiting on lots of appointments. It’s hard going.”
The Elgin mum has now banded together with other families in the region to form a group of concerned parents.
She added: “I want to help end the social isolation of parents that are carers. There’s very little support out there at the moment.”
Brooklyn, who loves to swim, has been a challenge for her parents to care for and has also proved difficult for staff at her school.
However, her mum fears the seemingly never-ending waiting lists will cause greater complications as her daughter grows up.
Ms Spink said: “It’s scary not knowing what help we will get or when we will get it. It could get to the point where somebody will get hurt before they step in.”
The worried mum appealed for Highlands and Islands MSP, Douglas Ross, to intervene on her behalf.
Mr Ross has tackled local NHS leaders about the situation, and said he expects answers within the week.
He said: “When I heard about the delays Brooklyn was facing I was appalled.
“I’ve written to NHS Grampian expressing my concerns about the lengthy wait Brooklyn is experiencing, the impact this is having on her wellbeing and the distress this has caused her family.
“I’ve urged the health board to assist this family as it is unacceptable to make a child who suffers from multiple conditions wait so long to be seen.”
An NHS Grampian spokeswoman said: “We are sorry to hear about the issues Ms Spink has raised about her daughter’s treatment.
“Strict rules on patient confidentiality prevent us from commenting on this specific case.
“However, we can confirm that, following a letter from her MSP, our feedback team are investigating this matter in more detail. They will respond directly in due course.”
