7:20am Thursday 21st August 2008
A STOKE Prior woman with multiple sclerosis (MS) claims she is the victim of a NHS ‘postcode lottery’ after being forced to pay for life-changing treatment.
Linda Brown, of Sagebury Drive, has had severe MS for nearly 30 years. She went private to fund specialist treatment at a Nottingham rehabilitation centre.
Paying £120 every month for Bobath physiotherapy treatment at the Patty Shelley Rehabilitation Centre, the 49-year-old applied for NHS funding in 2005.
This was turned down by the Worcestershire Primary Care Trust largely on the grounds that it would be unfair to other MS sufferers in the area who had no access to such treatment, according to the Health Service Ombudsman.
However, Linda’s husband, Tom, spoke to a Birmingham woman with a similar neurological condition who was receiving exactly the same treatment at the Nottingham-based centre funded by her primary care trust.
Describing the decision to deny Linda the funds as “unfair” Tom said: “If she lived in north Birmingham she would get this treatment on the NHS. We went private as we had no choice in the matter.”
The family say no-one has ever interviewed or seen Linda and she is still paying for her treatment, even though she was referred there by her local NHS hospital.
The 49-year-old says she benefited greatly from the treatment, which is designed to improve or restore normal functions and movement of the body. She is no longer wheel chair dependant, is off medication, and has had an improved quality of life.
After numerous failed appeals to the Healthcare Commission and Health Service Ombudsman, the family say they have now “exhausted all channels” to reverse the decision. A spokesman for the Worcestershire Primary Care Trust said Linda’s case was referred to the Healthcare Commission, who concluded that the decision to decline funding was correct.
“There are differences in every patient’s individual case so it is unfair to compare between PCTs.All trusts have to make difficult decisions,” he added.
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