Woman pulls out surgical staples HERSELF after growing fed up with waiting times
A DESPERATE transplant patient pulled out her own surgical staples while watching a video tutorial on her iPad – after growing fed up at NHS waiting times.
The patient performed her own DIY surgery after her exasperation left her "no other choice".
The woman, who has asked not be named, was told by surgeons she needed her surgical staples removed by last Sunday after a successful pancreas transplant the preceding week.
It caused me so much distress – I was completely panic-stricken for the last two days
However, staff at Caversham Practice in Kentish Town, north London, said they were unable to perform the five-minute procedure until next month, the woman claimed.
She also said her surgeon had been in contact to specifically ask for her to be granted an appointment.
The procedure, which should only be performed by a trained medical professional, was scheduled at her local doctors' practice for February 4.
The woman had also been advised to go to a nearby Accident & Emergency department as an alternative means of having the staples removed.
However, visiting the overstretched A&E departments at either Whittington Hospital, Archway or Royal Free Hospital, Hampstead, would have involved a "seven-hour wait", she said.
Instead of holding on for the scheduled appointment with her GP – set for 10 days after the deadline set by surgeons – the unnamed patient took matters into her own hands.
After pulling out the staples on Monday night, having watched a YouTube video tutorial, she said: "It caused me so much distress – I was completely panic-stricken for the last two days.
"I have just had a major operation and have serious health complications, and a seven-hour wait in A&E with lots of sick people is just not on.
"I just thought, I don't know what I'm going to do."
The distraught patient admitted she felt like she had "no other choice" other than to perform the procedure on herself.
"They showed it on an NHS website, so I just watched that a couple of times on my iPad," she added.
"I watched it a couple of times and then did it. I made sure everything was sterile and washed my hands with surgical scrub.
"The operation has been incredibly painful. It's hurting quite badly now. But the staples are out and it went ok, I think."
The next day, following an email from her surgeon, she was offered an appointment at the Caversham Practice – but by then it was already too late.
"I know they've got more patients than they can cope with, but I thought common sense would prevail," she said.
"If a top surgeon is calling you, then you might think, I better just have a word with somebody and see if there's a space."
A spokesperson for Caversham Practice said: "We are unable, for reasons of confidentiality, to discuss the care of any individual patient, but we are very happy to engage with any patient individually who wishes to discuss their care with us."
The Whittington Hospital has not hit the governments four-hour target – with moire than 94 people waiting longer to be seen in A&E.
The Royal Free Hospital fared even worse – with just 85.4per cent of patients in A&E being seen within four hours.
Some 536 people suffered a wait of longer than the government's target time.
The NHS is currently the subject of heated political debate in the run-up to the General Election, with Labour leader Ed Miliband reported to have said he wants to "weaponise" the health service prior to May's vote.
Earlier this month, Prime Minister David Cameron admitted the NHS is under "pressure" after A&E waiting times in England plummeted to their worst levels in more than a decade.
