Wilson welcomes plans to cut waiting times for Arthritis Drugs
Ulster Unionist South Antrim assembly member, Jim Wilson, has welcomed the announcement that £6million is to be invested to clear the current waiting list for drugs to treat severe arthritis.
In a statement, Mr Wilson said: “A number of individuals have approached my office over this issue. It also affects some members of my own family, so I am aware of the misery it causes.
“The statistics of this health issue in Northern Ireland are alarming with approximately 230,000 people affected Province-wide. Over 70% of sufferers are sufficiently affected to come within the terms of the Disability Discrimination Act; 1 in 5 GP visits concern arthritis and related conditions; the disease is the largest physical cause of disability and days off work in Northern Ireland and is the largest cause of disability in this country.
“Alarming statistics indeed – even more alarming is the fact that Northern Ireland has not had a dedicated strategy on arthritis and provision for people here continues to lag behind that on the UK mainland despite medical predictions that cases can be expected to increase.
“People assume that arthritis only affects the elderly. This is not the case. It can be a seriously debilitating illness which can affect all ages, and whilst it cannot be cured, medication can help people to manage their pain.
“Access to rheumatology services tends to be slow and sporadic and service provision here in Northern Ireland is way behind that on offer in the rest of the UK. Access to new treatments that have been proven successful in the USA is relatively good in mainland UK, with 2/3 of consultants satisfied that they can prescribe the drugs as required.
“Here in Northern Ireland we have, at the last count, nearly 450 people on a 2-year waiting list for such drugs. Additionally recent evidence suggests that this province has one of the lowest numbers of rheumatologists per head of population than anywhere else in Europe.
“This announcement is welcome news indeed. According to the Minister we can expect the number of people who are receiving specialist medicine to double and it is anticipated that everyone on the current waiting list will receive their treatment within the next two years.”