Painter 'unable to work' after repeated cardiology cancellations

49-year-old's appointment rescheduled for October 2024

A painter and decorator on the Isle of Man has told Manx Radio he’s been left unable to work because Manx Care keeps cancelling his cardiology appointments.

Paul Hay suffers from pericarditis – a condition which causes inflammation of the lining around the heart – and costochondritis which is inflammation of the connective tissues attached to the sternum.

The 49-year-old was due to be seen in the cardiology ‘One Stop’ clinic on 11 October after a previous follow-up appointment was cancelled 18 months ago.

However he’s been sent a cancellation letter with Manx Care blaming ‘unforeseen circumstances’.

Paul’s now been rebooked for October next year instead but says that’s not good enough:

Yesterday Manx Care apologised for cancelling a number of cardiology clinics saying it’s due to ‘capacity issues’.

The health body added: "We understand that this will cause concern for many of our patients and their families - we apologise for this and are doing what we can to reinstate these clinics as soon as possible.

"We are in the process of recruiting another cardiology consultant, which should assist with maintaining clinics going forward, however at the moment we are using all available resources to deliver cardiology appointments when we can.

"Once again we apologise for the inconvenience and concern this has caused for our patients and their families – those affected will be contacted in due course to rearrange their clinic appointment."

Any patients with queries are urged to contact the Manx Care Advice and Liaison Service.