Saturday surgery in bid to cut orthopaedic waiting times
ORTHOPAEDIC operations will be carried out on Saturdays, starting tomorrow, and more people will be sent off-island for surgery in a bid to reduce waiting times for routine procedures.
There are 151 patients who have been waiting for six months or more.
It is the latest initiative between Health & Social Care and the Medical Specialist Group under the secondary healthcare scheme.
Phase one has already brought waiting times within the contractual eight-week target for orthopaedic outpatient appointments.
Efforts are now on doing the same for inpatient waiting times.
Letters are due to go out in the next week offering some patients the opportunity to have their operation in the UK.
This option is only suitable for certain procedures and it is estimated that up to 100 people can be treated off-island over a three-month period.
Should someone decline this offer, they will remain on the Guernsey waiting list and their operation on-island would be progressed ‘as soon as possible’.
These patients would still receive the treatment they have been referred for, but it may take longer.
After three months, there will be a review to establish if there is a need to extend this option.
Saturday theatre sessions will increase the available slots for orthopaedic surgery on-island. Extra theatre lists are also being added on Monday and Friday mornings.
Physiotherapy cover will be extended to Sundays so there will be no delay in support if a patient has their procedure on a Saturday.
This will be kept under close review to ensure that weekend working does not affect normal operational scheduling.
Letters have been sent to those on the inpatient orthopaedic waiting list informing them of the current situation and providing advice on what to do if they are suffering increased pain or discomfort while waiting for an appointment.
Islanders are encouraged to discuss the appropriate pain management with their GPs if there is any doubt.
‘HSC would also like to reassure patients that this affects routine orthopaedic appointments only, as emergency and urgent patients are always given clinical priority,’ a spokesman said.
HSC said it was working hard to reduce orthopaedic waiting times in this area of increasing demand and thanked patients, staff and surgeons and off-island partners for their patience and support.
. A policy letter from HSC is scheduled to be presented to the States in March setting out a programme of PEH modernisation.
The plans include increasing capacity within theatres and the critical care unit, which are essential to increase the number of operations that can be delivered in Guernsey.
