A Scots woman has hit out at the Scottish Government after receiving a letter from NHS Scotland saying she would be waiting over two years for an appointment.
Carol Cunningham said she was fuming when found out her appointment in the cardiology department at Glasgow Royal Infirmary would not be until July 3, 2024.
The 64-year-old took to Twitter to blast SNP health secretary Humza Yousaf , as well as branding the SNP-led government as a “failure” over her lengthy wait.
Carol wrote: “Hi @HumzaYousaf I have received this appointment letter – note the date. Yes, 3 July 2024, more than 2 years from now. Is this the best SNHS can do for patients? You said yesterday staffing is at record levels – where are they? #SNHS #SNPfailure @theSNP
Carol said that although it may well only be a routine appointment she is not sure until she has the opportunity to be seen.
She also said her original appointment to check her health was in good condition was cancelled due to Covid, so it is potentially up to four years she is having to wait with it being delayed previously.
Carol’s social media post has already been flooded with support and shared anger over the time window with nearly 500 retweets and over 1,000 likes.
One person said: “Is that still a telephone consultation? That’s incredible.”
Another wrote: “It has to be a typo, I notice it’s cardiology surely to god it’s not correct?”
But one person had looked into it further and confirmed it “must be correct – 3rd July 2024 is a Wednesday.”
Another added: “Unless they got the day of the week wrong too, it’s correct.”
Another patient let down by the system said: “My other half waited 4 months for a ‘phone consultation’ in May. Spoke to the doctor for 10 minutes who said she needed a clinic appointment! Total waste of time. Still waiting for the appointment letter.”
In a statement, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde said: “Throughout the pandemic NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde staff have been working tirelessly to provide the highest standard of care to our patients and this remains the case.
“While COVID-19 recovery continues and restrictions continue to be eased, the pressures on all our services are still significant.
“All appointments, including outpatient and routine follow up appointments, are prioritised by clinical need.
“A review of this particular appointment, which is a follow-up outpatient appointment, is being undertaken and contact with the patient will be made.”
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “While the pandemic has inevitably led to a backlog, excessively long waits are unacceptable and we note that the health board concerned is urgently looking into this.”
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