Haemophilia Society Calls On The Uk Government To Deliver Comprehensive Care For Everyone Affected By Bleeding Disorders

Main Category: Blood / Hematology
Article Date: 17 Apr 2009 - 2:00 PDT

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Today is World Haemophilia Day. This year the World Federation of Haemophilia is focusing on the importance of comprehensive care in bleeding disorder management.

In the UK we are very fortunate that it has been recognized for a number of years that bleeding disorders are complex and that effective management requires the provision of a comprehensive care program delivered by a multidisciplinary team.

The Haemophilia Alliance, a group of health professionals and patients, has set out the requirements for comprehensive services in a national service specification document which itemises the network of clinical and specialised services that are required for the delivery of comprehensive care.

It is clear to both the Haemophilia Society and the Haemophilia Alliance that the provision for specialised dental care included in that service is not being met. In many areas of the country, current levels of service fail to provide patients with bleeding disorders the care they need. There are particular problems with the provision of dentistry within the comprehensive care setting.

The Haemophilia Society believes that people with bleeding disorders should be exempt from dental prescription charges to ensure they have ready access to dental services,. The NHS claims that this cannot be provided due to statutory restrictions.

Chris James, Chief Executive of the Haemophilia Society, said:

"The Haemophilia Society believes that it is up to specialised commissions to ensure that Trusts support Haemophilia Centres in offering world class comprehensive care.

"In particular the centres must be able to provide check-up and preventative dentistry. We fear that if this is not the case then there will be a significant reduction in the quality of care with an increase in costs in the long term. If the dental health of patients with bleeding disorders is allowed to deteriorate then they will need more emergency care which will be much more expensive than in the general population because of the need to inject clotting factor.

"The NHS has a responsibility to ensure that conservative care can be optimized to minimize the future need for more emergency care which is both high risk for patients with bleeding disorders and more expensive for the NHS.

"It is clear that providing dentistry as part of a comprehensive package of care for people with bleeding disorders provides the best care and is cheaper for the NHS. It is vital that red tape isn't aloud to get in the way of providing the best possible care."

Notes

- World Haemophilia Day is the 17th of April every year.

- The World Federation of Haemophilia has made "Together We Care" the theme of this year's World Haemophilia Day to promote the benefits of the comprehensive system of care across the globe. For a more detailed explaination of comprehensive care and it's benefits see the podcast on http://www.wfh.org

Source
World Federation of Haemophilia

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