Chronic pain sufferers across the NHS Grampian area say they have reached the “end of their tether”, as new figures reveal patients wait an average of 36 weeks to be seen at the country’s worst-performing health board.
NHS Grampian has long held the unenviable honour of being the worst-performing region in Scotland for chronic pain waiting times, with new figures showing 48.4% of patients (401 people) in the region are being seen later than the 18-week target set by the Scottish Government.
The figures from the last quarter of 2019, which were published by NHS Scotland’s Information Services Division, also reveal patients wait on average 36 weeks to be treated by the health board.
Opposition politicians have called on Health Secretary Jeane Freeman to take action to put right the “horrendous situation” of long waiting times for chronic pain patients.
Chris Bridgeford, chairman of Moray-based campaign group Affa Sair, says chronic pain patients have been let down by the Scottish Government over the last decade.
Some of the group’s members have been left waiting as long as 18 months to two years for return appointments, with some reporting suicidal thoughts and attempts because of the lack of help.
Continue reading for:
- The figures
- Political response
- Patient’s story: ‘I just want to get on with my life’
- Patient’s story: ‘There’s a stress with waiting’
- Scottish Government: ‘People wait too long’
Figures released under Freedom of Information reveal there were an estimated 4,095 return chronic pain patient visits within the NHS Grampian region in 2018 with patients also facing long waits for these appointments.
But these are not measured against the 18-week target as is the case with new appointments so patients claim they can be left even longer.
The campaigner recently wrote to the Scottish Government sharing a report the group had compiled which outlines the experiences of chronic pain patients in the region, including the need for increased staffing levels and capacity at Dr Gray’s Hospital in Elgin.
He said: “They have been asking the wrong people for the last 10 years or so. They don’t ask the patients themselves. It’s only now that we have created a stooshie that they are going to consult with us.”
Chris, who lives in Forres and has suffered with chronic pain for more than 40 years, said he would like to see a proper pain clinic established in Moray where patients could see a consultant, plus physiotherapy and psychiatry. Currently, patients have to travel to Aberdeen to receive treatment, which can be “horrendous” for sufferers.
In a letter to Mr Bridgeford in January, Public Health Minister Joe FitzPatrick said patients in Grampian were facing “unacceptable long waits”, adding he was “concerned” delays were leading some people to experience suicidal thoughts or considering self-harm.
But he added that progress was being made with more than £500,000 being invested in NHS Grampian’s specialist pain service to provide additional resources, including a full pain clinic to open in Elgin once a week.
Mr Bridgeford said: “At the moment all we get is to see the consultant. With this money they say they will be able to give us the consultant plus physio and psychiatry. If we need any sort of treatment like an infusion or injections we have to go to Aberdeen, which is horrendous for people with chronic pain.
“I have seen some members of the group who have been left 18 months to two years so by trying to get the first time waiting list down they just didn’t concentrate at all on the returns.”
The figures:
- Between October to December 2019, there were 1,246 patients who waited more than the 18-week target for their first appointment in Scotland – 39.5% of the total number compared to 37.2% in the previous quarter.
- NHS Grampian was the worst-performing health board, missing the target for almost half of patients (48.4%), followed by Ayrshire and Arran (37.8%) and NHS Highland (31.3%).
- Just 26.6% of patients at NHS Grampian were seen at a pain clinic/service for their first appointment in the final quarter, or 85 patients, with 235 patients being seen over 18 weeks. At NHS Highland 94.2% of patients were given their first appointment within 18 weeks.
- The average wait at NHS Grampian is 36 weeks – the longest wait in the country. This compares to the Scotland-wide average wait of 13 weeks.
A spokesman for NHS Grampian admitted waits are “far longer” than they would like but said the relaunching of the Pain Management Programme next month will help reduce waiting times.
He said: “A bid for additional funding to relaunch the Pain Management Programme was successful and it will recommence next month.
“This has allowed us to take on additional staff, with physiotherapists and psychologists now in place.
“Current waiting times for the chronic pain service are far longer than we would like, however, the clinic’s relaunch will help reduce clinic waiting times in the coming months.”
The health board could not confirm the amount of funding but did state some of the cash would be used on setting up a clinic in Elgin, with the specifics around that, including the location, still to be confirmed.
Meanwhile, an NHS Highland spokesman said the health board is aware that there is an increase in waiting times for the chronic pain management service and apologised to all patients affected.
He added: “The waiting times have been extended due to an increased number of referrals and the capacity within the service to meet demand.
“NHS Highland is looking at different models of provision and working on a three-year plan to increase capacity and address waiting times.”
‘Fallen on deaf ears’
Liberal Democrat North east MSP Mike Rumbles said having people suffer in pain while they wait up to 10 months is “not acceptable”, adding his calls for more funding for the region had fallen on “deaf ears”.
He added: “Almost 40% of the patients waiting for chronic pain treatment in Scotland fall under NHS Grampian.
“Clearly our local health board is struggling to find the staff and resources it needs to deliver the same level of health care that other parts of Scotland receive.
“Ministers have been underfunding NHS Grampian for over a decade and local services in the north-east continue to get a bad financial deal from the Scottish Government.
“I have repeatedly called on health ministers to look again at how our local health care is funded but it has fallen on deaf ears.”
Meanwhile, Scottish Labour health spokeswoman Monica Lennon called on the health secretary to “put right this horrendous situation”.
She said: “Time and time again we see Scotland’s chronic pain patients being badly let down.
“As a member of the cross-party group on chronic pain I have heard heartbreaking testimonies from chronic pain patients and have seen first hand the depths of despair and suicidal thoughts that some of these patients have been driven to for lack of treatment.
“That thousands of patients in chronic pain are anguishing on waiting lists is a scandal. The cabinet secretary must do all she can to put right this horrendous situation and ensure the most vulnerable in our society have access to treatment when they need it.”
Miles Briggs, health spokesman for the Scottish Conservatives, branded the increasing waiting times as “simply unacceptable”.
He added: “As bad as these figures already are, the true picture could be much worse as they don’t include patients already in the system.
“Despite the SNP’s waiting time guarantee and their failing Waiting Time Improvements Plan, waiting times continue to worsen.
“The health secretary simply lurches from catastrophe to catastrophe – with hospitals still not open, health boards in crisis and senior staff launching attacks in the media.
“Over the last 13 years SNP ministers haven’t taken chronic pain patients seriously – ignoring their concerns and needs and failing to improve access to pain management clinics and treatments.
“Scottish Conservatives are determined we see a step change in Scotland to help deliver for chronic pain patients and their families.”
Patients’ stories: ‘I just want to get on with my life’
Heather Armstead, from Udny Green, Aberdeenshire, has suffered chronic pain since a bad motorbike accident in 2014, which left her with a paralysed arm and multiple other injuries.
The 38-year-old, who is in pain “every minute of every day”, admits she has “reached the end of her tether” after being told she has to wait until early next year for spinal cord stimulation surgery.
Heather last saw her consultant in February 2018 and chose in June last year to have her left arm amputated but later learned she would have to wait until early 2021 to get a spinal cord surgery.
She said her decision to remove her arm appears to have put her to the “back of the list” for the spinal surgery.
I’m in pain every single minute of every single day.”
She said: “If I want it (spinal cord stimulation surgery) done privately it would cost £40,000.
“I have reached the end of my tether. I’ve tried all the drugs and acupuncture. I just want to get on with my life.”
Heather, who recently graduated with a masters in museum studies at Aberdeen University, added that both the numbers of people waiting and the staff shortages will continue to grow.
She said: “It’s just the waiting. I’m living my life in limbo. It’s affecting my mental health.
“When I found out in June it would be 2021 until I was seen I had a depressive episode thinking it would be another year of this.
“I’m in pain every single minute of every single day.”
‘There’s a stress with waiting’
Lesley Brown, from Cults, Aberdeen, attends the Grampian Pain Support Group, a self-help group set up to help people suffering from persistent or chronic pain.
The 59-year-old was diagnosed with Sjögren’s syndrome a month ago, a condition which sees the body’s immune system attacks glands that secrete fluid, such as the tear and saliva glands.
It can cause a range of symptoms, including muscle and joint pain.
Lesley has also suffered from fibromyalgia for 42 years, a long-term condition that causes pain all over the body.
She believes it is time the north-east hired a specialist in this area as currently she is waiting to see a rheumatology specialist.
She said: “There is a nurse in Glasgow and we need something like that in Aberdeen. There’s a stress with waiting.”
Scottish Government: ‘People wait too long’
Responding to the figures, a Scottish Government spokeswoman said: “Living with chronic pain is incredibly difficult and we are determined to improve services for all those affected.
“We know that in Grampian some people are waiting longer than is acceptable to be seen for the first time after they are referred to a pain clinic and the board are working urgently to address this.
“In 2019/20 more than £500,000 was made available to NHS Grampian to specifically target pain management waiting times.
“We fully expect NHS Grampian to ensure this additional funding provides resources required for specialist pain services.
“We are determined to reduce waiting times, which is why we have made available more than £108 million this year from our £850 million Waiting Times Improvement plan.”
