NHS will only give hip or knee surgery when patients’ pain is so bad it stops them sleeping, probe finds
The rules, which have been introduced in the West Midlands, were slammed by doctors claiming operations 'may not be as beneficial as if they had been offered earlier'
NHS patients will only get hip or knee surgery if the pain stops them sleeping, a probe found.
The new rules have been imposed in the West Midlands to save cash.
Last night the ploy, which was rumbled by the Health Service Journal, was slammed by specialists.
Stephen Cannon, vice president of the Royal College of Surgeons, warned: “Delaying surgery adversely affects a patient’s quality of life and surgical outcomes.
“The operation may not be as beneficial as if it had been carried out earlier.
“This policy is the latest demonstration of how NHS financial pressures are directly affecting patients.”
Three clinical commission groups, which buy local NHS care, are at the centre of the row.
They are Redditch and Bromsgrove, South Worcestershire and Wyre Forest.
Papers seen by the journal state: “A patient’s pain and disability should be sufficiently severe that it interferes with daily life and sleep.”
Only “severe” cases qualify for ops.
And anyone grossly overweight must be told to first shed ten per cent of their flab.
The aim is to save £2million a year by slashing hip replacements by 12 per cent and knee ops by almost a fifth.
A spokesman for NHS Redditch and Bromsgrove CCG said: “If a patient feels they require surgery but do not meet the criteria, there is a clear appeals system.”
This involves an individual funding request.