18
Jun 2019
Waiting times in Wales means eye care patients at risk of permanent sight loss
According to new statistics from the Welsh Government, around 35,000 patients who are at risk of permanent sight loss are waiting too long for eye care.
A target has recently been introduced, which is aimed at prioritising the most critical patients in order to prevent those with treatable conditions from losing their sight.
According to the statistics, around 35% of all patients in the high risk category waited longer than the target time, and no health board met the target to see 95% of the most serious cases on time.
Diseases such as age-related macular degeneration and glaucoma can result in permanent blindness, whereas conditions such as cataracts can deteriorate, but do not permanently harm vision.
Wales is the first nation in the UK to introduce this target based on the urgency of the condition, together with the existing referral to treatment target.
Vaughan Gething, Welsh Health Minister, said “It isn’t just about saying ‘there’s a new measure, that will resolve everything’.
“It won’t, but it will tell us an honest picture of what we’re doing and what we still need to do, and the commitment from me and the government is to invest in the right parts of our service, delivering the right care at the right time.”
The Royal College of Ophthalmologists’ Dr Gwyn Williams, said there had been an increase of 40% in the number of appointments in recent years.
He said “It’s like a gigantic showball rolling downhill. But you can’t fix a problem until you’ve measured the problem and the first step towards fixing it is knowing exactly how bad the situation is.”
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Posted by Karen Motley, Clinical Negligence Department, Chadwick Lawrence LLP (tonymay@chadlaw.co.uk ), medical negligence lawyers and clinical negligence solicitors in Huddersfield, Leeds, Wakefield and Halifax, West Yorkshire.
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