The dad of a girl left in pain after waiting nine months for surgery has slammed a hospital trust for failing to fast-track her op.
Ten-year-old Elizabeth Richards has been walking on her tip toes for more than a year after developing a condition where her heels sit higher than her toes.
Elizabeth has been back and forward to the doctors ever since for the condition called idiopathic tip toe walking and has been told surgery could be the only way to fix the problem, which is causing her to lose balance and struggle to walk the 400 meters down the road to school.
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But after first being seen in June last year she’s still waiting for an appointment for surgery, and has been told it could be October before she gets her much-needed op.
Elizabeth’s dad Mark, 48, from Spennymoor, County Durham told The Northern Echo: “This was during the pandemic she first started walking on her tiptoes.
“When we went to see the doctor in June last year, she said she had never seen it as bad so quickly – Elizabeth’s heels sit about four inches from the floor.
“She was falling over and getting picked on at school.
“We were told on July 21 last year that surgery was the only way to fix the issue and we’re still waiting.”
The condition can develop when the bone and muscle develop and grow at different rates.
Elizabeth had previously been fitted with splints to try and rectify the issue, but they did little to help her feet. Serial casting, where new casts are repeatedly fitted to try and realign the foot, has also been all but ruled out.
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The procedure she needs can take just 10 to 15 minutes and involves cutting the tendon so it can stretch out and heal in the correct position.
“We’ve been told she might not be seen until October at the earliest”, Mark, a design engineer added.
“She’s 10-years-old and can’t do things that normal 10-year-olds would be able to.
“I feel like we’re constantly fighting to get her seen and I’m running out of fight. They just aren’t interested at all.
“Thankfully the school has been great, but the hospital trust has been terrible and we’ve just been going around the houses with them.”
It comes just a month after BBC2 documentary Saving Lives in Leeds featured a 13-year-old boy who had also developed idiopathic tip toe walking and had a 10 week wait for surgery.
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The County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust said it was “sorry” about Mark’s concerns and that a thorough investigation will take place.
A spokesperson for the trust said: “We are very sorry indeed that Mr Richards has concerns about his daughter’s care which he has also raised via our formal complaints procedure.
“This involves a thorough investigation, the results of which will be shared with Mr Richards.”
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