Health boards in the north-east and Tayside have admitted endometriosis patients are waiting too long to be seen.
It comes as endometriosis sufferers across the two regions revealed the realities of living with the condition, including long waits for treatment at hospitals in the region of up to a year.
Last week, an inquiry was launched by MPs into the challenges faced by endometriosis sufferers, with patients and healthcare practitioners asked to provide evidence.
NHS Tayside has managed to reduce waiting times for outpatient appointments across its gynaecology department – the department which deals with endometriosis patients – but patients are still waiting six months to be seen.
A spokeswoman for the health board said: “We acknowledge that patients are waiting too long for an appointment.
“As with other boards in Scotland, we are facing recruitment challenges. However, we are continuing to actively recruit to fill vacancies within the service.
“A number of improvement initiatives have reduced our waiting times for outpatient appointments across gynaecology services to 30 weeks.
“Our clinical teams are working really hard to develop further plans which will continue to reduce patient waiting times.”
Meanwhile, in neighbouring NHS Grampian, patients have also been experiencing around six-month waits to be treated, with the board admitting patients are waiting longer than they would wish.
But improvements are under way with a service redesign being rolled out to create extra capacity for patients.
A spokesman for the health board said: “Waiting times for gynaecology services are improving within Grampian.
Patients are currently waiting longer for gynaecology services than they – or ourselves – would wish.
“This is down to several factors including the hard work and dedication of our staff, which we are very grateful for.
“We are also in the process of implementing a service redesign which is already creating extra capacity for patients.
“As we continue to move forward with this we expect figures will improve further.
“That said, patients are currently waiting longer for gynaecology services than they – or ourselves – would wish.
“We are grateful to them for their understanding and to the staff involved for their hard work in managing the waiting lists.”
Scottish Government: ‘In some areas of Scotland people wait too long to be seen for the first time’
A Scottish Government spokeswoman said: “Living with endometriosis and chronic pain can be incredibly difficult and we are determined to improve services for all those affected. That is why the Programme for Government 2019-20 includes a commitment to develop a Women’s Health Plan to tackle women’s health inequalities, including endometriosis. We have also included gynaecology in the Scottish Access Collaborative Programme and are developing pathways that would benefit people with endometriosis.
“We are already seeing improvements at NHS Grampian, including a 28.3% reduction in outpatients waiting over 12 weeks and a 22% reduction in the number of Treatment Time Guarantee patients waiting over 12 weeks between end September 2018 to end September 2019.
“However, we know that in some areas of Scotland people wait too long to be seen for the first time and we continue to work with all NHS boards, including NHS Grampian and Tayside, on actions they are taking to improve performance, supported by record investment and our reform programme.
“From the Waiting Times Improvement Plan, a total of £108 million has been invested so far this financial year. This funding has been made available to increase capacity and reduce waiting times across the NHS. We expect the longest waiting patients to be treated first wherever possible, while recognising that those with urgent needs will also be prioritised.”
