'Chris Hoy effect' sees patients wait over a year for urology appointments, NHS Forth Valley board hears

Waiting times of more than a year to get a urology appointment have been partly due to ‘the Chris Hoy effect’, members of NHS Forth Valley’s board have heard.

Members were told that more than 70 people have been waiting more than 52 weeks to see a specialist in the Forth Valley area, but the board was reassured that work is now under way to tackle the backlog.

The board’s regular performance report showed concerns over waiting times for cancer treatment but urology was highlighted as a concern.

Garry Fraser, director of acute services at NHS Forth Valley, told members that nationally there had been a huge upsurge in the numbers of men looking for testing for prostate cancer, after Olympic hero Chris Hoy shared his diagnosis.

He said: “They are calling it the ‘Chris Hoy effect’”.

“It’s a good thing, in a sense, in that people are coming to get checked but it has caused a spike across the whole country in the number of referrals to urology.”

The report added that there have also been ‘staffing challenges’ in the urology speciality, due to sickness absence, but members were told there is “a plan in place” to ensure that the backlog is dealt with and waiting times come down.

Mr Fraser said it is likely that the levels will reduce again in the coming months.

The performance report also shows that Forth Valley has continued to struggle with improve on meeting its targets for treatment in the emergency department and across Forth Valley Royal Hospital as a whole.

But Mr Fraser said that a recent decision to work closely with Falkirk’s Health and Social Care Partnership to move patients who have been delayed in their discharge from hospital is beginning to show signs of success.

He reported that 35 patients have now been moved into the community which is freeing up hospital beds in the over-stretched hospital in Larbert.

“This piece of work has really helped to free up areas and get our flow going,” he said.

Another new addition is a ‘frailty unit’ which identifies frail patients at the front door and getting them treatment quickly in order to discharge them without delay.

Mr Fraser said that the most recent figures will show that the work means that the hospital has fewer 12-hour waits for patients in July.

Work will continue to look at staffing levels in the Emergency Department, to make sure that staffing matches the volume of patients, particularly during back shift hours.

He admitted that while overall performance was showing an improvement “it is still quite variable” and they will continue to monitor the situation.