"Still waiting two and a half years later"

I'm writing this today as a very concerned parent. My son has a "Significant speech and language disorder" as advised by our S&LT. My son is now 5 years old and still has little to no communication skills. He can say a handful of words and makes open vowel sounds.

My main point today is that after being referred to the Community Pediatrician in October 2018 by our Health Visitor, we have still not been triaged and have been left in the dark. This is severely impacting on our family's mental health. My wife had thoughts of suicide, she believes she has failed as a mother and has required supports from her GP and Heath Visitor to help mitigate this. I myself have suffered from depression and was off work for a period of time to support my family.

We have had three further referrals to the pediatrician, one from our new Health Visitor, an update to this from the Health Visitor and a referral from our Doctor/GP. 

I understand that there are limitations to the service that can be provided owing to COVID-19, but the application was a year and a half old when the pandemic started. I have been advised by the referral management team, yesterday that since March 2020 the Pediatrician is only speaking with emergency cases. 

Again, I stress my understanding of the pressures put on services by COVID-19, but most services have adapted and are providing a service as required. For a service with a highly pressured waiting list, which has been ongoing for numerous years to have not been prioritised for support by NHS Lanarkshire is extremely concerning. 

We ask for support in seeking assistance from the Pediatrician to help provide a better life for our son.