Hundreds go blind while waiting for NHS treatment

HUNDREDS of people are going blind every year because of long waits for NHS treatment, doctors claim.

Ophthalmologists yesterday warned that more than 260 patients with common eye conditions, such as glaucoma and age-related macular degeneration (AMD), were losing their vision permanently because they were not treated by the NHS in time.

And last night an all-party parliamentary group on eye health and visual impairment called for “urgent action” amid warnings that eye clinics were unable to keep pace with demand.

Research by the British Ophthalmological Surveillance Unit found in four out of five cases, those affected had chronic conditions requiring longterm follow-up, meaning they were not covered by NHS targets.

Some were forced to wait more than a year for checks, while on average those who suffered sight loss had waited three times as long as doctors would have wanted.

There were 7.6million ophthalmology appointments in England in 201617 – a 10 per cent rise in four years. Just over half of patients told the inquiry they had experienced at least one appointment or treatment being delayed.

Joyce Robins, from Patient Concern, said: “Losing your eyesight is one of the most horrifying things an older person can contemplate. It is terrible that hundreds of people’s lives are ruined by delays – it’s the next worst thing to death.” Eleanor Southwood, the chairman of the Royal National Institute of Blind People, said: “Nobody should lose sight simply because their eye clinic is too busy to provide care in a clinically appropriate timescale.”

She urged ministers to implement recommendations in the report, which include the creation of national targets to ensure patients requiring follow-up are seen within appropriate times.

Michael Burdon, the president of the Royal College of Ophthalmologists, said the report highlighted an “increasing crisis” in eye health services, which were “under-resourced and overwhelmed”.

The number of people in the UK suffering from sight loss is projected to increase by more than 40 per cent by 2030. Average waiting times of six months are being recorded in some areas for cataract surgery, with rising waiting times in more than half of NHS areas over three years.