The mom of a four-year-old boy with complicated wants mentioned she fears he might die ready for life-changing surgical procedure.

Collette Mullan made the declare to BBC Spotlight because it examined the size of hospital ready lists.

The Department of Health has described present ready lists as “entirely unacceptable”.

Óisín, from County Londonderry, has quite a few well being circumstances together with cerebral palsy, and is at present ready for 2 procedures.

He is fed with a tube that carries his meals by way of his nostril into his abdomen, however because it was inserted six months in the past, his mum Collette mentioned he has struggled to breathe.

“His breathing has been horrendous, choking all the time.”

“He would choke until he vomits. It’s very scary” she mentioned.

Óisín is now ready to have the nasogastric tube eliminated and changed by a special feeding system which fits on to his abdomen.

Collette mentioned she was informed it might be a three-year anticipate the process.

She is worried that Óisín’s cerebral palsy places him at a higher danger of issues, saying she had been warned there was a hazard he might aspirate.

“He could die. Anything going into his lung really, it could be very dangerous,” she mentioned.

The Belfast Health and Social Care Trust, the place the specialist surgical procedure is to be carried out, informed Spotlight the wait must be not more than two years.

It apologised for the time Óisín has needed to wait, including that there was a restricted variety of paediatric surgeons who match the tubes.

It mentioned 75 youngsters had been at present ready for the surgical procedure.

“It is extremely difficult to prioritise these children based on clinical need due to the complex nature of their care plans” the belief mentioned.

Collette informed Spotlight Óisín can also be ready for surgical procedure on his hip.

“His right hip is completely out of socket; it is just completely out,” she mentioned.

“Because this is out, then we have to match the two up together. It’s not going to make him walk but it’s to prevent pain.

“Pain will ultimately come at some stage. Thank goodness it hasn’t come but.”

Óisín was placed on the list for this procedure last year but Collette said she had no idea when it was likely to be carried out.

The Belfast Trust said demand for such surgery was outstripping capacity, and that it was exploring options to alleviate waiting lists across paediatric orthopaedic services.

BBC Spotlight also spoke to Taylor Clark, a 30-year-old former coffee-shop manager who has had to give up work due to poor mobility and severe pain.

“The ligaments and tendons and muscle are all affected by that as a result of they are not being held like a construction – they’re kind of swimming round,” she told the programme.

“I’m simply in ache always – every thing hurts.”

Taylor said she was referred for an outpatient rheumatology appointment two years ago.

When she phoned in January this year to check her progress on the waiting list, she said she was told it could be approximately another six years.

The South Eastern Trust said it could not comment on individual cases.

In a press release the belief mentioned it was “very acutely aware that sufferers have to attend for a big time to obtain a primary outpatient rheumatology appointment” and that it understood the “misery” this could cause for patients.

As part of the programme, Spotlight brought together a panel of health experts to come up with ways to try and tackle Northern Ireland’s waiting list crisis.

They included the former director of public health, Professor Gabriel Scally, health economist Professor Dame Carol Propper and former chief executive of the Northern Ireland Health and Social Care Board John Compton.

The panel agreed that more accountability within the health service was needed, along with the introduction of a performance management regime.

It also recommended greater involvement with the public and strong political leadership, which the experts said were all required to try to fix the current waiting list crisis.

The Department of Health told Spotlight that Northern Ireland’s hospital waiting times were “totally unacceptable” and had been “made considerably worse by the pandemic”.

“Far too many individuals in our group [are] ready far too lengthy for evaluation and remedy” the division mentioned.

It said a key component in tackling waiting times was a greater separation of elective care from urgent and emergency care.

“This ringfences staffing, mattress capability and theatre capability for elective remedies, serving to to extend the variety of sufferers handled and lowering cancellations as a consequence of emergency circumstances,” the department said in a statement.

It added: “Reconfiguration of our hospital companies is beneath manner with the institution of day process centres and elective in a single day keep centres.”