Humza Yousaf urged by Scots mum to 'listen and act' as son faces agonising wait for surgery

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Humza Yousaf has been told by the mum of a sick child to get a grip of the crisis in the NHS after her son faced a three-year wait for life-changing surgery.

The case of Cody, three, was raised at First Minister's Questions today as an example of the lengthy waits for certain kinds of paediatric treatment.The youngster from Bellshill has been repeatedly diagnosed with tonsillitis - and his enlarged tonsils obstruct over 75 per cent of his airway, making it difficult to eat, drink and even breathe.

His mum, Ami, has to lie awake at night to ensure Cody is still breathing normally. But despite his plight, the family were told an urgent referral for treatment will take three years.Ami, 34, said: "Cody has been badly failed and it has damaged not only on his health, but his education and his wellbeing."It has been heart-breaking to see my son suffer and now I am facing the financial stress of being forced to go private."I hope the First Minister will listen and act, so that no other children are let down in this way."Anas Sarwar accused the Scottish Government of failure after a report by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health showed paediatric waits had risen in some cases by 114.6 per cent between 2012 and 2023.The figures also showed the percentage of children waiting longer than 12 weeks rose from one per cent of all cases in 2012 to 48.9 per centThe Scottish Labour leader said: "In paediatrics alone, over 10,000 children are waiting for the medical care they need.

50 per cent of them have been waiting for more than the legal 12 weeks."Across our NHS, whether in CAMHS services or in other specialisms, children face unacceptable waits that leave them distressed and in pain."One mum, Ami, has told me the