Royal's Fracture Clinic Failing Patient

Targets for fracture treatment are not being met by a major Belfast hospital.

A young man from Newry, who has suffered a complex break, has been waiting over two weeks to be seen by a specialised medic at the Royal Hospital.

Rory McKnight, 16, an up-and-coming rugby player, suffered a serious injury in an unrelated fall and has since been denied the opportunity to train at a specialised summer rugby training camp as his injury has not been dealt with.

He is also in the middle of his GCSE examinations - which require him to dictate his answers through a third party as he cannot use the injured limb.

Both he and his family are mystified by the delay in accessing the treatment he needs to end his painful condition and have spent long hours at the west Belfast hospital unsuccessfully seeking treatment.

The news will be a considerable disappointment for the NI Health Minister, Michael McGimpsey, who earlier this year praised the care of fracture patients at other hospitals.

Northern Ireland is the only region in the UK to have a target for fracture treatment. He said Trusts across Northern Ireland were initially required to ensure that 75% of patients were waiting no longer than 48 hours with this target being increased to 95% at the end of March 2009.

Speaking in Londonderry, the Minister said: "Since April 2008, over 90% of patients have been treated within 48 hours at Altnagelvin's fracture unit.

"Indeed during January, the unit achieved an outstanding level of success, treating some 97% of patients within two days. This is a remarkable achievement, which has made this unit one of the best performing in the UK.

"This is not simply about meeting targets, but rather it is about ensuring patients have access to the very best and rapid treatment possible," he said.

He also recently praised a new £9.4million Trauma and Orthopaedic Unit at Craigavon Area Hospital which he said is part of an overall strategy to dramatically reduce the time people in Northern Ireland have to wait for fracture and orthopaedic treatment.

However, in the case of young Rory McKnight, even an extended period of virtually 'camping out' at the Royal Hospital to insist on treatment - following an existing two-week wait - has failed to bring about a resolution.

A spokeswoman for the Belfast Trust, which runs the Royal, said that two issues had caused the delay.

"The Fracture Clinic is working flat out to deal with seasonal problems that are being experienced at the moment.

"Also, in the case concerned, there is a complex fracture involved which requires a particular specialised consultant to deal with it and he is only able to take two clinical sessions weekly," she said.

She hoped there would be a resolution during the current week, but as yet, neither the patient nor his parents have heard anything further.

They have challenged the hospital management both on the issue of managing their son's care in an appropriate time frame and on what they claim is a complete lack of communication from the Royal.

See: Targets Set For Hospital Fracture Care

(BMcC)