Alexandria man's anger at being asked if he wanted to stay on NHS scan wait list

dailyrecord.co.uk:

An Alexandria radio presenter referred for a scan after having a tumour removed has hit out after being asked if he wanted to be removed from the lengthy waiting list.

Alan Caldwell, of community station Lomond Radio, is one of hundreds of patients on a waiting list for a Dexa scan - which is able to identify slight changes in bone density.It is the only type of scan available that can diagnose osteoporosis before a bone is broken.He’s been left angry after receiving a letter asking him if he wanted to continue waiting, labelling the situation “a recipe for disaster.”It comes as a Freedom of Information request revealed that the average wait for a Dexa scan in the NHSGGC area was 56 weeks in December of last year – compared with just eight weeks in January 2018.Alan, who was referred by a consultant after undergoing an operation to remove a benign tumour four years ago, said: “When I got the letter I didn’t really know what was going on.

I was being asked to make a medical decision, did I still want a scan?“Surely that’s not for me to answer?“I wasn’t aware that I was scheduled for another Dexa scan, but obviously my consultant has put that in to check that things are still progressing in the right way.“The first letter I got was on March 16 saying that I was on the waiting list for a scan, asking if I wanted to remain on that.“Then I got a follow-up saying that they hadn’t heard from me, and if I didn’t require a scan then I’d be removed from the waiting list and referred to the consultant.“That’s putting the horse before the cart.

For me they should be contacting the consultant to ask if patients still need a scan, because I don’t know if I do or not.“That was the aspect that annoyed me.