Moray MP Douglas Ross has welcomed a response from NHS Grampian who have agreed to hire specialist equipment to ensure that a local patient will get the urgent eye surgery he has been waiting months for. Douglas wrote to acting Chief Executive Amada Croft after being contacted by a constituent who has been waiting since June for the operation.
Douglas said: “I was contacted by a gentleman who had been diagnosed with a progressive degeneration of the cornea last year but found that NHS Grampian did not offer the corneal cross linking procedure he needed to prevent his condition getting worse.
“Although his consultant tried to get an appointment at every health board in Scotland that offers the procedure, none was able to offer the service to anyone outside their own area.
“I wrote to NHS Grampian to raise this on behalf of my constituent and I am pleased that they have responded positively and are prepared to hire the equipment to ensure that this procedure can take place quickly.
“Without treatment, this man’s eye condition would continue to worsen and ultimately leave him needing a cornea transplant, so I welcome NHS Grampian’s response. The ophthalmology team at ARI will also assess the success of the treatment in this case and determine if it is possible for NHS Grampian to routinely offer corneal cross linking which would be an extremely positive move.
“I am delighted that this local patient can now set aside months of worry and look forward to getting the treatment he needs. Given the ongoing problems with treatment for eye conditions in Moray, I hope this is the first step of an improved service for local patients.”