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A NEW scheme is slashing Glasgow's long waiting times for patients with bone problems.
People who need hip replacements or other joint surgery have routinely faced delays of up to two years before even seeing a surgeon to find the source of their problem.
But a new pilot project has slashed the wait for some patients to just a few weeks.
NHS Greater Glasgow has appointed two extended scope practitioners, ESPs, to see patients before they visit a consultant.
The ESPs can see patients with anything from bunions and arthritis that may require surgery to toe deformities and nerve problems that can be treated without a hospital visit.
It means people who don't need major surgery are being seen and treated more quickly.
And it also means surgeons are being freed up to deal with more patients who do need operations.
The clinics are already having an impact on waiting times in the north-east and south-west of the city.
ESP Elaine Yule, a qualified podiatrist, said the scheme worked better for patients and staff.
She added: "It's about patients seeing the appropriate person.
"Only about 30% of people referred to an orthopaedic surgeon go on to have surgery.
"Some people don't want to have surgery and many more don't need it and are referred on to us anyway.
"This way we can see them earlier and we can also refer patients who will need surgery to the consultant more quickly."
Some foot conditions can cause other problems in the knees, hips or back.
Treatment can be as simple as suggesting different types of shoe.
The team has a target of seeing patients within six weeks from referral by a GP. That compares with a typical 18-month wait to see a surgeon.
Anyone who then needs to see a consultant for diagnosis or surgery should now see them within 12 weeks of visiting the new service.
The scheme is already helping to tackle a massive waiting list problem at Glasgow Royal Infirmary and the Southern General.
Surgeons there are able to spend more time operating on patients because they spend less time examining people who don't need to see them.
Ms Yule said: "When we took our first patients in May, I was seeing people who had been on a waiting list for two years.
"That fell to 18 months, then a year and now I'm seeing patients who are referred by their GP directly to this service."
Last year surgeon Tony Reece warned the city's orthopaedic services were close to collapse because of poor planning and management.
The backlog of patients in the north of the city hit 10,000 - the equivalent of a full year's work for surgeons.
New orthopaedic clinics help slash NHS waiting times
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